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The Improve

December 1960

Prepare for the Future at a Great University

BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY, one of the
great universities of the world, offers finest edu-
cation in 57 departments of instruction. The
students come from every state in the Union and
many foreign countries, and because of superior
training are in demand over the nation. They
study on this fast-growing, beautiful campus
with finest facilities and staffed with an out-
standing faculty trained in a hundred univer-
sities and colleges.

Plan NOW to Attend —
Second Semester Begins Feb. 6

Brigham Young
UNIVERSITY

PROVO-UTAH

BUT THERE IS A PLUS AT BYU - It provides
spiritual growth in addition to the academic and
physical. Through its democratic spirit, counsel-
ing facilities and religious organizations, BYU
retains all the friendliness of the small college
while providing all the advantages of a big
university.

— CLIP AND MAIL-.

TO:

Public Relations Department

Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah

Please send me more information about BYU. I am

especially interested in

NAME

ADDRESS

CITY STATE.

BY DR. FRANKLIN S. HARRIS, JR.

Elastic Highways

S. S. Taylor, general manager, de-
partment of traffic, City of Los
Angeles, has pointed out that if
during the rush hour in Los Angeles
each automobile were one foot
shorter this would be equivalent to
giving Los Angeles 80 miles of four-
lane highway.

Dreams for Everyone

There is a need for a certain
amount of dreaming each night ac-
cording to Dr. William Dement of
the department of psychiatry, Mount
Sinai Hospital, New York City. Re-
porting recent experiments in Sci-
ence, Dr. Dement notes that a
typical night's sleep includes four or
five periods of dreaming, which
account for about 20 percent of the
total sleep time. Controlled experi-
ments with awakening sleepers while
not dreaming and with sleepers just
as soon as they started to dream
showed later an increasing amount
of dreaming when the subject had
been deprived of dreams. It was
found that rapid synchronized eye
movements occurred in dreaming as
if the dreamer were watching the
events of his dream.

Rabbits on the Range

A study by Dr. DuWayne L. Good-
win has shown that on the range
seven jack rabbits equal one ewe in
amount of forage consumed. Jack
rabbits are also more destructive
than livestock because they graze
closer.

CHOCOLATE

Smart new
party cookie

DECEMBER 1960

873

The Improvement Era

The Voice of the Church

Contents for December 1960

Volume 63 , Number 12

Official organ of the Priesthood
Quorums, Mutual Improvement
Associations; Ward Teachers, Music
Committee. Department of Education,
and other agencies of the
Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints.

Church Features

The Editor's Page: Old Bethlehem, President David O. McKay 886

General Conference Section: 900 to 954

What about Jesus Christ? President David O. McKay __. 904

"I am the Life, the Light, the Way, and the Truth; and the Law,"

President J. Reuben Clark, Jr ..„'. 906

The Peace that Comes through Righteousness, President Henry D. Moyle .... 908'

Cry Repentance, President Joseph Fielding Smith 910

(The remaining conference talks are presented in the order in which they were
given and are indexed by speaker and subject on page 960)

The Church Moves On, 882; Melchizedek Priesthood Page, Go, Ye Messengers of Glory, 978;
Presiding Bishopric's Page, 980.

ART AND PHOTO CREDTTS:

Era Staff. 876. 894, 982, 983, 992

Arnold Friberg, 886

Dale Fletcher. S88

Max Tharpe, 892

Dave Biirton, 896

Virginia Sargent, 890, 898

Hays, Lew Merrim, Monkmever
Service, H. Armstrong Roberts,
Ernst Wittke, pp. 982, 983

Youth Section: Ralph Clark

Special Features

Mama's Conscience and the Christmas Tree, Nell Womack Evans „_ 888

Christmas at East Millcreek School, Josephine C. Fabian _„„._ 891

Knowledge Is Power, Dale T. Tingey 892

And the Heavens Opened, Mirla Greenwood Thayne 894

A Merry Reading Christmas 896

Church Scholars Speak 956

The Spoken Word from Temple Square, Richard L. Evans .. 935, 970, 976, 984, 986
THE ERA OF YOUTH between pages 932 and 933

Exploring the Universe, Franklin S. Harris, Jr., 873; These Times: Shoes, Morals, and Culture,
G. Homer Durham, 876; Letters and Reports, 878.

Today's Family: Florence B. Pinnock, Editor

Christmas Is for Happy Doing, Joyous Giving, and Merry Eating

Candy Cooking

Festive Feasting

The Last Word

982
990
990
992

Stories, Poetry

Strength from the Desert, Alhy R. Mearse 898

Poetry 890, 907, 911, 929, 932, 933, 937, 940, 941, 954, 958, 966, 969

The Improvement Era Offices, 50 North Main Street, Salt Lake City, 11, Utah

David O. McKay and Richard L. Evans, Editors; Doyle L. Green, Managing Editor; Marba C. Josepiison, Associate Managing Editor; Albert L. Zobell, Jr.,

Research Editor; John- G. Kinnear, Editorial Associate; Florence B. Pinnock, Today's Family Editor; Marion D. Hanks, The Era of Youth Editor; Elaine

Cannon, The Era of Youth Associate Editor; Ralph Reynolds and Ed Maryon, Art Directors.

Archibald F; Bennett, G. Homer Durham, Franklin S. Harris, Jr., Milton R. Hunter, Hugh Nibley, Sidney B. Sperry, Contributing Editors.

Joseph T. Bentley, General Manager; Bertha S. ReedeR, Associate General Manager; Vehl F. Scott, Business Manager; A. Glen Snarr, Subscription Director;

Thayer Evans, Regional Advertising Representative.

reserved. Subscription price S3. 00 a year, in advance; foreign subscriptions, S3.50 a year, in advance; 50c single copy, except for special issues.

Entered at the Post Office, Salt Lake City, Utah as second-class matter. Acceptance for mailing at special rate of postage provided for in section 1103.. Act

of October 1917, authorized July 2, 1918.

The Improvement Era is not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts but welcomes contributions. Manuscripts are paid for on acceptance at the rate of VAc

a word and must be accompanied by sufficient postage for delivery and return.
| Thirty days' notice is required for change of address. When ordering a change, please include address slip from a recent issue of the magazine. Address
l changes cannot be made unless the old address as well as the new one is included.

THE COVER:

The quiet stillness of the

Christmas season is warmly reflected

in our cover.

Color Photographer Joseph Muench

describes his scene as the "sunset

glow through a rift in the clouds . . .

the failing sun tints the Know with

its warm glow and fills the forest

with a magic mood just before

darkness falls."

Cover lithographed in full color
by Deseret News Press.

874

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

Well-known construction superintendent Frank Lemperle with volunteer workers at site of new church building.

Postum is the natural whole-grain drink

that warms the heart

Have a cup of friendship . . . have a cup of Postum. So many
leading citizens do. Postum is made from whole-grain cereals,
slow-roasted to bring out a rich, satisfying flavor. It's hearty,
healthful, hospitable.

Postum is 100% coffee-free, contains no caffein or other
artificial stimulants. Ready in an instant, it's always welcome.
Make sure you always have Postum on hand.

100% coffee-free

Another One product of General Foods

K INSTANT * t

POSTUI*

DECEMBER 1960

875

Safeway offers its heartiest
wishes for a happy holiday sea-
son and a bright and prosperous
new year to all our friends — the
farmers we buy from and the
families we sell to.

Safeway has purchased more
than $50,000,000 worth of agri-
cultural products from Utah and
Idaho farmers the past year. This
has helped to make the year bet-
ter and brighter, we know, on
many farms.

These quality farm products
in turn have been sold to Utah
and Idaho families for the en-
joyment of good eating that is so
much a part of our wonderful
American way of life.

It has been an outstanding year
for Safeway. We've enjoyed and
appreciated being part of this
three-way team. We're proud to
have been able to participate in
all major junior livestock shows
and help deserving youths attend
all institutions of higher educa-
tion in the area. We hope to
continue these pleasant relations
in the years ahead. We like to
be a . . .

FRIEND OF THE FAMILY
FRIEND OF THE FARMER

SAFEWAY

These Times

Shoes, Morals,
and Culture

BY DR. G. HOMER DURHAM

PRESIDENT, ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITY, TEMPE

The fifteenth session of the Gen-
eral Assembly of the United Nations
may go down in history as the ses-
sion of Khrushchev's shoe. The
General Assembly, nevertheless, has
become the most important inter-
national forum in history. The
presence of heads of states— Eisen-
hower, Macmillan, Nasser, Nkrumah,
Sukarno, Khrushchev, and all the
others— demonstrated this.

For the first ten years the Security
Council seemed the dominant organ
of the organization. American fram-
ers in 1945 mentioned the poten-
tialities of the General Assembly,
however, as a "town meeting of the
world." The fifteenth session prob-
ably approached expectations.

A social scientist looks at such a
gathering in different perspective
than the press. The following ob-
servations therefore, are in addition
to the descriptions and editorial
comment in readers' home-town
papers. Many such have been un-
complimentary to the United Na-
tions, to its location within the terri-
torial confines of the United States,
and to the behavior of members and
participants. All readers are wel-
come to their own opinions on these
questions. Here are some of mine.

I would like to look at the scene
from the standpoint of (1) history,
(2) cultural interaction and develop-
ment, and (3) politics. ("Politics" as
used here means aiming at resolu-
tion of conflicts and the gameman-
ship of national advantages and
disadvantages. )

1. History. More heads of more
important states met at the fifteenth
session than at any other gathering.
They met, not in a "council of kings"
or rulers, but as delegate-representa-
tives in a juridically sanctioned inter-
national body, the General Assembly.
This is an important fact and
accomplishment. It carries more
historic and legal significance than
if a dozen or so rulers with their
entourages, came together. The
historic and legal significance is that
the meeting came about as part of a
complicated, but none the less de-
veloping, juridical order. The meet-
ing was not one of chance or caprice.
It was held at a specific time and
place, conducted according to spe-
cific rules, with definite agenda and
procedures. In short, a form of in-
ternational constitutionalism was at
work.

Constitutionalism does not guar-
(Continued on page 968)

876

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

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Letters

and

Reports

NO PLACE TO PARK

In a letter from one of the Saints in
Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada, the attention
of The Improvement Era editors was drawn
to a paper clipping taken from the Leth-
bridge Herald, September 14, 1960. The
article, entitled "New Excuse for not Going
to Church; There Was no Place to Park
the Car," revealed that members of three
other denominations "couldn't get within
blocks of their respective churches" after
10 a.m. the preceding Sunday because
". . . the LDS Church was the scene of a
large conference and delegates were at
the church all day."

The civic center parking lot, the court-
house parking lot, and the city hall park-
ing area were all jammed with cars. Facili-
ties which are usually adequate for normal
Sunday parking suddenly present a prob-
lem when an LDS conference is held. The
creation of the new Taber Stake, however,
will now have alleviated a great deal of
the problem and President Elmo Fletcher
of the Lethbridge Stake told newsmen "We
would be happy to co-operate with the
other churches by notifying them of forth-
coming events that may pose a parking
problem."

The covering letter, sent in by M. E.
Spencer, indicated that the writer's father
had been called to labor for six months
as a missionary in Lethbridge "many years
ago."

Alameda, California

Dear Editor,

I am writing this letter in credit to your
wonderful magazine. I want to express
my thanks to you and the staff for the
publication of such a very worthwhile
magazine.

The Improvement Era has been in my
home for a good many years with its arti-
cles of good faith and clean living. Since
I entered the Coast Guard in January
1957, I have received a subscription of
The Improvement Era from the wonder-
ful people of the Crystal Heights Second
Ward, Salt Lake City, Utah.

I want to publicly thank them for their
help and faith in guiding my way into
the future— the Latter-day Saints' way.

Keep up the good work and keep The
Improvement Era coming each month, it
is a very strong reminder of what I and
all servicemen like myself have to be thank-
ful for. (The Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints.)

Sincerely,

James R. Hess
Sonarman Second USCG

CORRECTION

In the article "Scholarship" by William
E. Berrett which appeared on pages 332-
334 of the May 1960 issue of The Improve-
ment Era, the following paragraph was
printed :

"The late B. H. Roberts gave up hope
of finding the date when the Book of
Mormon was published, but it was found
about fifteen years ago by Elder Francis
Kirkham while he was searching through
the files of the old Manchester Guardian.
Just a little advertisement, just a line or
two appearing in the issue of March 18,
1830 that announced 'The Book of Mormon
will be off the press during the week, and
for sale at such and such a place.' The
issue the week following, on the 25th, bear-
ing again two or three lines of advertise-
ment 'The Book of Mormon is now off the
press and is available at this place.' So
between the 18th and 25th of March, the
Book of Mormon issued from the press."

In working with the Book of Mormon
material for the November issue, the editors
came across photostats of these two adver-
tisements. Further research revealed that
the paper carrying the advertisements was
actually the Wayne Sentinel. The dates
of the advertisements were March 19 and
26, 1830. The cover note in the November
issue (page 770) gives the correct in-
formation.

New York City

Dear Editors:

It is wonderful to read the Era and gain
the great spiritual strength and increase
in the knowledge that this magazine has
in it.

It brings out many great truths that
help strengthen one against the powers
of darkness working on the world today.

I thank the Eternal Father in heaven
for this magazine, and for his children
upon the earth.

Robert S. Ward

EastProvo (Utah) Stake MIA

Dear Editors:

Congratulations on the terrific layout
and continuity of your September Era of
Youth section. I find your approach with
new ideas most stimulating.

Sincerely,

Robert W. Stum, Supt.

878

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

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The Church
Moves On

October 1960

Elder Duane A. Frandsen sustained as president of Carbon
(Utah) Stake, with Elders Leland Kay Dalton and Royal N.
Allred as counselors. They succeed President Elton L. Taylor
and his counselors, Elders Arvel L. Stevens and Asa L. Draper.

The 130th semiannual general conference of the Church
convened in the Salt Lake Tabernacle, with sessions being
held Saturday and Sunday, October 8 and 9, as well. Part or
all of the daytime sessions were broadcast by many radio and
television stations. To generations of Church members, the October
conference had a number one higher than the previous April con-
ference. This confusion in numbering was corrected when, in
October 1957, that conference was cancelled because of the epi-
demic of Asian "flu."

During the sustaining of the General Authorities of the
Church, three new Assistants to the Council of the Twelve
were sustained: Elder Nathan Eldon Tanner, president of
the Calgary (Alberta, Canada) Stake; Elder Franklin D. Richards,
president of the Northwestern States Mission; and Elder Theodore
M. Burton, recently released president of the West German Mission.
The priesthood session of the general conference was held in
the Tabernacle and taken by telephone-wire to scores of other
gatherings of priesthood members as far away as New Zealand.

The First Presidency announced the appointment of Elder J.
Thomas Fyans as president of the Uruguayan Mission, succeeding
President Arthur M. Jensen. President Fyans, at the time of this
call, was serving as president of the East Jordan (Salt Lake County)
Stake high priests quorum. He is a former bishop of Butler Ward.
He will be accompanied to the field of labor by his wife and five
daughters. Uruguay, a comparatively recent mission field, was
organized as a mission after World War II.

The semiannual conference of the Deseret Sunday School
Union was held this evening in the Salt Lake Tabernacle.

Philadelphia Stake was organized by Elder Harold B. Lee
of the Council of the Twelve and Elder Sterling W. Sill,
Assistant to the Twelve, as they divided the Eastern States
Mission to form the Eastern Atlantic States Mission as well. Elder
Bryan F. West was sustained as the stake president with Elders
Mark B. Weed and Raymond O. Obendorfer as counselors. Wards
include Audubon (New Jersey), Philadelphia, Valley Forge, Wyn-
cote, (all Pennsylvania), and (Continued on page 960)

882

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

The magnificent chapels that dot our countryside seem to have a very special
beauty at Christmas time. The skill and talent of inspired architects, using brick
as their basic building material, has achieved splendid structures that will be a
source of satisfaction for years to come. They have used brick because its beauty
is more than surface deep. It's permanent, fire-safe, low in initial cost, low in
maintenance costs, and adaptable to any type of architecture. All these factors
make possible our enjoyment this Christmas . . . and for countless Christmases to
come — our everlasting chapels of brick.

3100 SOUTH 1100 EAST

COMPANY

SALT LAKE CITY

DECEMBER 1960

883

1 <^J

* \\ '>- V

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1. Leadership Vol. II

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Every ward and stake officer and
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2. Doctrine & Covenants
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At last! An understandable
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the numerous sidelights a great
help in explaining the historical,
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this Standard Work. $5.95

884

THE IMPROVEMENT EHA

v«

3. LD.S. Reference .,
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By NVelvin R. Brooks

Here's the reference book you've
been waiting for! Over 2,000 doc-
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4. Portrait of a Prophet

By Norma J. Fischer

Here is an intimate and unusual
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a side of the prophet too long neg-
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his relationships with his children
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5. Stories from the Ten
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By Emma Marr Petersen

The Ten Commandments take on
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Please send the following circled
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or money order ( ) for $

12 3 4 5

NAME

ADDRESS

City State

DECEMBER I960

885

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rvytrvwz fnextcuj*

♦

his is the season when men's hearts turn to the event at Bethlehem.
Bethlehem, to be sure, is the scene of many important events in
Biblical history. Its first mention in the Bible is in connection with
the death of Rachel, over seventeen hundred years before Christ was born. It
was the home of Boaz and Naomi, and there was consummated the beautiful
story of Ruth. Eleven hundred years, or thereabouts, before the birth of
Christ we read of Bethlehem as the home of David's house, and it was at
Bethlehem that the Prophet found David tending his sheep and anointed that
shepherd boy to be ruler of Judea and of Israel.

A little later we hear of the Philistine garrison in David's home city,
Bethlehem. How dear that town was to his heart, I think, is shown by the
wish that he expressed for a drink of water from the well at Bethlehem. Many
a time he had quenched his thirst at that well. As he stood facing the enemy
that held his birthplace, three of his soldiers, hearing their general's wish,
broke through the ranks of the Philistines and got water for their leader. It is a
touching picture of the loyalty and devotion that David inspired in his
followers.

Luke tells the story of the birth of the Christ Child so simply and so
magnificently:

"And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from
Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed. . . .

"And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city.

"And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into
Judea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of
the house and lineage of David:)

"To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child.

"And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished
that she should be delivered.

"And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling
clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in
the inn.

"And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keep-
ing watch over their flock by night." (Luke 2:1, 3-8.)

In the Old Testament book of Micah, the fifth chapter, Bethlehem is
mentioned by the prophet as the birthplace of the Promised Messiah. I
wonder whether the shepherds to whom the first revelation of Christ's birth
was given had not that prophecy in mind as they kept watch over their flocks
by night?

The name Beit Lalm means the house of bread or food. Throughout the
ages this area has been known as one of the most fruitful spots in Palestine. It
is interesting to note that the primeval wheat, (Continued on page 991)

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If I regard the Christmas tree as a "Christian tree"
( and a fitting symbol for a belief in the Tree of Life )
and refuse to feel concern that our Christmas-tree
custom might perforce have evolved from paganism,
it's because of Mama's conscience.

You couldn't say Mama's conscience was prejudiced,
exactly. She was certainly never hurtful to those who
failed to share her interest in furthering the tradition
of the Christmas tree for the joy she felt the custom
held. It was a very young tradition called foolishness
in the puritanical village of my childhood.

Rather, Mama's conscience was co-operative. It
allowed her success in ferreting out oddments of
Christmas-tree history in keeping with her Spartan
upbringing but also intriguing to her houseful of
eager children. Still, her conscience obliged her to
ponder the argument of so many of our citizens that
the Christmas tree was a pagan practice, stemming
from the pre-Christian era when evergreens were be-
lieved to ward off witches, ghosts, and evil spirits.

But oh, the tree, bedecked and beautiful with small
gifts, often of our own making, was something even
we could afford. Mama was short on the material
aspects of a Merry Christmas, but long on the spirit of
the symbolism. She determined that the spirit of the
thing should be emphasized and thus allay any feeling
of lack that might otherwise be felt at our house.

That's why our yearly trek to the woods— a week
to the day before Christmas Eve— took on crusade-
for-establishing-the-Christmas-tree-in-our-time aspects-
Mama's embellished recital of Christmas-tree why's
and wherefore's was an idyllic voice in the wilderness-
pastoral, yet rather piecemeal.

This is not as strange as it may seem, for while
most peoples have a tradition of a "Tree of Life,"
and many religious festivities center around the use
of greenery in rituals, Mama remembered from her
father that protestations about such "heathenish goings-
on" greeted this practice as late as the 1900's in our
Arkansas hill country. Even in the more sophisticated
East, the custom had fought for its life, and the
lighted Christmas tree at church services was bitterly
opposed in 1851— Cleveland.

New York was selling Christmas trees on the side-
walks for the first time about 1851, though. Mama said
that this was right and good for "the poor city people"
who couldn't go out and get their own tree as we more
fortunate ones did. Our own grandfather still did not
approve— history and Mama's ideas to the contrary.

But Mama said her conscience never hurt her about
the Christmas tree in spite of these condemnations,
for it took a long time to spread. That our beloved
tree was a hand-me-down from the early days of
Christendom, when forest dwellers tied gifts of food
in branches of trees, out of reach of prowling animals,
and as solace for passersby was the only legend
Mama needed. She dubbed the practice "Christian
trees" and went along with the belief that this Christ-
tian trait of giving was a "fitting" beginning for a
tree of tradition and sentiment. Mama would tell us
that giving, on trees or otherwise, was a human kind-
ness, an act of goodwill from one of God's creatures
to another. She said few sacrifices were demanded
of people but that, nevertheless, each of us reaped
what we sowed. Mama said even if only hungry
animals fed upon the gifts that were left in trees, it
would still be worthwhile, for they would be most
grateful for food.

She said giving was really a two-sided thing, that the
receiver of a gift had an obligation, too, or that other-
wise we'd have no cause to celebrate Christmas as the
time the world received the best Gift of all. And she
said the fact that it was a tree on which we hung gifts
only pointed, as far as she was concerned, to emphasize
the universal belief of an at-oneness between all peo
pies, since the never-changing evergreen tree sym
bolized eternal life— the belief of many peoples.

I had little idea of the seriousness of Mama's
recitation. But I knew it meant a lot to her to bring
the fragrance and freshness of the forests into our
living room, and I suppose I must have somehow
sensed the living Christmas Spirit she wanted her
actions to indicate. At any rate, I entered her battle
for information to back up her belief. And I remember
with what elation Mama greeted my entry. She felt
that I, going to school, would have more chance than
she, with a family often to do for, to run down items
of interest to add to her stock of conscience-clear
Christmas-tree lore.

When I brought home, in carefully copied notes
from a nursery catalog in my teacher's library, the
information that it was Saint Boniface in the 700's
who had fostered the use of the evergreen as a fitting
symbol of the Tree of Life of Christian belief, Mamg
was sure we could somehow reconcile this to the
Christmas-tree custom. Hadn't the good man notec
that Irish festivities centered around a tree? Hadn't

That our beloved tree was a hand-me-down from the early days of Christendom when forest dwellers
tied gifts in branches of trees as solace for passers-by was the only legend Mama needed.

DECEMBER 1960

889

he preached to the people of the timeliness of the fir
as neither shedding its foliage nor changing its color?

The fact that this was all either of us ever learned
of Saint Boniface had no bearing on this useful bit of
information. As far as I'm concerned, he started the
Christmas-tree custom.

My stern grandfather still exacted the promise from
Mama that before she trimmed and lighted a Christmas
tree in his presence, she would account for so doing.
Since he was around most of the time now, Mama
passed on to me the task of finding some Christian
history for what she knew we were going to do. My
teacher knew to a "T" that it was Martin Luther who
started trimming the tree that Saint Boniface set up
to honor. Furthermore, the story I learned was so
pretty!

According to the legend, young Martin Luther was
strolling through the countryside alone one Christmas
Eve, outside his town of Weimar, Germany. The sky
was brilliantly alight with stars, with town lights
sparkling on snowflaked evergreens, and the wintry
landscape took his thoughts to the Nativity of Christ,
Upon his return home he attempted to reproduce the
glory of the outdoors with lighted candles on an ever-
green tree, to portray the reflection of the starry
heavens.

Oh, I knew Mama's conscience would love this,
even if it did take two centuries after Luther until
around 1700 for the custom to catch on. It had been
considered "child's play" even in the Rhine River
district of Germany where the young priest lived.
After that, the decorated and lighted Christmas tree
went to England through Queen Victoria's German
husband, Albert.

It crossed the Atlantic during the American Revolu-

tion when Hessian soldiers soothed their homesickness
by lighting and trimming a Christmas tree at Fort
Dearborn, Illinois, in 1804, which lent international
flavor to the Christmas tree that was favorable to
Mama.

But Mama said that the symbolism was not worship
of the tree itself, but everybody observing the custom
of Christmas trees was a united praise-giving to set a
pattern for a Christian nation's public acceptance of
its private beliefs. She said we'd play our part, and
we'd reap the benefit, recapturing to our own spirits
the love and charity centuries of the custom have lent.
This light, Mama said, would dispel any evil or com-
mercial aspects of our celebrating. It was the sensible,
economical, and beautiful way for everybody to ob-
serve Christmas, Mama said.

Everybody wasn't liking it, though. In fact, many
were bemoaning the cutting of the trees and declaring
that in another fifty years there wouldn't be a tree
left in our forests. This theory, supported by no less
a personage than conservationist President Theodore
Roosevelt, had been quite a hurdle for Mama's con-
science. She settled it, however, when a newspaper
account told of two young Roosevelts smuggling a
hitherto forbidden Christmas tree into the White
House. Under pressure conservationist sources as-
sured Mr. Roosevelt (and Mama) that supervised
harvesting of trees was good for the forests.

After this, Mama read up on proper tree-cutting and
applied it to the long-needle pine which, rather than
the country-wide favorite, balsam fir, occupied the
corner of our living room. Cut diagonally, placed in
water and its branches watered daily, the pine was
every bit as Christmasy, Mama said, as the balsam.
She was a little hard (Continued on page 976)

THE
FOLKS

ARE
COMING

BY MAUDE RUBIN

<^w.

Day-long her footsteps circle like an eddy
About the kitchen; by night the tempo slows.
Spice fragrance halos cookie-jars, all ready
For children's glad tomorrow. Grandma knows
The way a boy gets hungry in-between meals-
Says growing legs are hollow, needing food.
She knows each has a favorite kind, that he feels
Is better than the others— extra good!

Now quiet folds the big old house in sleep—
The Christmas tree's bright glitter dims the moon.
A field mouse steals a crumb or two to keep
Her babies still: "The folks are coming soon!"

890

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

Four days before Christmas the children of East Millcreek Elementary
School had a party. The child in Little Women who said, "Christmas
won't be Christmas without any presents" should have been there. Not
one present was in sight-no plastic toys, no bubble gum, no exchanges of
gifts in the traditional school Christmas-party spirit. Yet, there is not one
child in the twenty-four schoolrooms who will say it wasn't a real Christmas.
They all worked hard to make the party a success. Each student agreed
to earn by his own labor at least twenty-five cents or more to go into a
money bag. Everybody in the school participated, including the principal,
Mr. Paul Worthen; the teachers' representative, Mr. Victor Slade; the presi-
dent of the P-TA, Mrs. Stanley H. McAffee; and the chairman of the
project, Mrs. Clarence Felix. When the time came to count it all up, the
money in the bag amounted to one hundred dollars! What a present they
could have with $100!

And then, on December 21, 1959, a group of twenty-four boys and
girls, one from each room, chosen by ballot, boarded the school bus and
started out on Operation Christmas. Accompanied by four adults who had
been helping them, they went first to the headquarters of the Crippled
Children's Fund and presented a check of $50 to that group as a Christmas
present.

The next stop was at the Reading Room for the Blind in the Blind
Center. The president greeted the whole group and accepted from one
little girl the big check of $50. The children were invited into the reading
room and were told about the work done for the blind. The president then
asked, "Do you children realize how much this money you have given us
will mean to the blind who come here?"

The children shook their heads. "It will be held in a special account
called 'transportation funds,' " she explained, "and this is what 'transporta-
tion' means to the blind. Many of them have no family nor anvone to
take them places; many live all alone or in nursing homes and cannot see
to go out by themselves. All of these people are brought to this room four/^
days a week, every week of the year, and while they are here we read '
to them-books, newspapers, magazines, current events-all the things they
want to know but cannot see to read. A number of women take their
own cars all around the city to pick up the blind people, bring them here
and then take them home. Often there are not enough private cars avail- (
able for all who want to come. Sometimes we have forty-five or fifty blind HZ'g iisffet's get
waiting to be called for, and it ;s very disappointing if they are all ready back to' school
and can't get a ride." ,ai\d *cl1 the other

Listening with interest, the children obviously waited to hear their part
in the story. The president then told them, "Now, this is where the trans-
portation fund comes in. When there aren't enough volunteer drivers,
we arrange for the blind to be brought to the center in taxi cabs. The taxi
men are very kind to our people; they put as many in each cab as possible,
and help them in and out, because some of the blind are eighty and ninety
years old and need to be assisted. So, every penny we can get for the
transportation fund means that many more blind people can be brought
here to enjoy the reading room sessions."

The president waited a moment before concluding: "Just think, this
wonderful gift your school has given us will help bring over one hundred
blind people to the reading room in the next few weeks. One hundred
blind people will have a Christmas present from each of you which they
can enjoy for a long time after Christmas (Continued on page 991)

CHRISTMAS
AT EAST
MILLCREEK
ELEMENTARY
SCHOOL

BY JOSEPHINE C. FABIAN

DECEMBER I960

891

CONDUCTED BY THE UNIFIED CHURCH SCHOOL SYSTEM

DALE T. TINGEY,

GENERAL SUPERVISOR OF SEMINARIES

AND INSTITUTES OF RELIGION

"A wise man is strong; yea, a man of knowledge
increaseth strength." (Proverbs 24:5.) Nearly
everyone has spent years acquiring the knowledge
that is now his possession. In fact, the chief purpose
of schools is to disseminate knowledge by means of
facts, figures, and experimentation. When we see the
tremendous effort and expense involved, some are
prone to ask the question, "Is knowledge so important
that a good part of our lives should be devoted to
searching after it?" Indeed even some in the Church
have felt that it is not necessary to study diligently
the vast amount of knowledge the Lord has revealed
to us.

A recent convert to the Church prayed fervently
for the Lord to reveal unto him a testimony of the
divine origin of the Book of Mormon having never
taken the time to read the marvelous testimonies con-
tained therein.

Others bear witness to the truthfulness of the Book
of Mormon message while neglecting to follow the
counsel of Moroni to read these things and ponder

892

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

them in their hearts. The great value of the Book
of Mormon, and all other revealed knowledge, is in
that we study it carefully and ponder it in our hearts
in order for it to become an unshakable pillar in our
testimonies.

What Is the Place of Knowledge in our Lives?

In modern civilization, all will agree that knowledge
plays a crucial part in our lives and affairs. Life has
become increasingly more complex in our atomic age,
with an infinitely greater number of problems. Addi-
tional knowledge is necessary to help us face difficult
problems and to solve them successfully. It is not,
however, the ultimate. in the stairway of progression
but is merely a means to more important goals.

Recently a new college student rushed in before
her class commenced and exploded to the institute
teacher, "Quick, before the others arrive, prove to
me that there is a God." She then related how the
night before she had dated a fellow with no religious
training and, being favorably influenced by her strong
faith, he had asked for evidence as to the actuality of
God. She bore her testimony to her companion, and
he was impressed with her sincerity, but again he
queried for evidence as to the reality of God. In
desperation she pointed out that she knew within
her heart that God lived and that we were his children,
but she could not point to any facts upon which she
based her testimony.

A knowledge of the revealed truths concerning the
nature of God or a knowledge of the evidence Alma
presented to Korihor, the Anti-Christ, as evidence of
the existence of God, would have been a strong sup-
port in this young woman's testimony. (Alma- 30.)
Members of the Church need an intellectual basis
for their testimonies. The spirit can bear witness to
the youth of the Church, but such will have little
lasting effect if young people do not obtain an abiding
knowledge of gospel principles. After the first vision,
Joseph knew that God lived and that Jesus Christ
was his Son, but he was unschooled in the scriptures
and unfamiliar with theological problems. His testi-
mony of Christ would have produced little fruit if he
had not endeavored continuously to gain additional
knowledge of God and of his plan of salvation through
study, prayer, and a life compatible with the truth
he had received.

Knowledge Is a Means to Important Ends

What, then, are the ends to which knowledge leads?
There are a great number. Here are a few as they
pertain to the Church:

1. Interests. One can build wider, deeper interest
in the gospel as a knowledge of its principles is ob-
tained. Many members do not have an interest or
appreciation for genealogy. Possibly this is due to
their lack of understanding of the importance and
scope of this great work. With a sound knowledge of
"work for the dead," a new interest would appear in
one's life, and additional happiness would be gained
as one saw a more meaningful integration of the whole
gospel. .« --

2. Goals. As one's knowledge increases, he is more
qualified to set up worthwhile goals to guide and direct
his life. It is almost axiomatic that we seldom venture
beyond the, goals we set for ourselves.

3. Service. Since the greatest happiness in life comes
from serving and sacrificing in behalf of others, it be-
hooves us to become qualified to serve. As members
of the Church we cannot forget our responsibility to
our Heavenly Father. We have been called and
chosen to teach and serve our fellow men.

Recently in a four-hour testimony meeting in Cali-
fornia, hundreds of young seminary students expressed
their desire to dedicate themselves unto the Lord.
However, there is a direct, relationship between effec-
tive service and their understanding of God and his
plan for his children here on the earth.
. 4. Testimonies. As before mentioned, testimonies
will not long endure unless they are founded upon a
clear understanding of gospel truths. Otherwise, the
witness of the Spirit has no foundation upon which
to anchor its pillars.

5. Eternal Life. From an LDS point of view, eternal
life is more than immortality. It connotes a Godlike
life, so rich in quality and in depth that it -stirs in the
breast of man an eternal quest. To have a life rich
in love, service, fellowship, creativity, and apprecia-
tion of the beautiful things in life, requires a knowledge
of the truths on which they are based. Just before
the Savior's death he gave this solemn statement
regarding knowledge: "And this is life eternal, that
they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus
Christ whom thou hast sent." (John 17:3.)

A Thirst for Knowledge

After sitting in an Aaronic Priesthood class and
watching an inexperienced teacher struggle to impart a
vital gospel principle to the robust, energetic youth, we
both realized the importance of a common problem.
How could we develop a thirst for the beauties of the
gospel in the hearts of "wild and wooly" boys? We
asked the most enthusiastic disturber the reason for his
lack of attention; he countered with the statement,
"What good will this (Continued on page 972)

DECEMBER I960

89a

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BY MIRLA GREENWOOD THAYN

...911(1

TT the
Heavens,
opened

"No son of mine will be a vagabond musician! Bah!
To be a musician is to starve on the streets of Ger-
many. My son will learn to manipulate a razor or
write a law brief instead of thumping upon a clavi-
chord! Bah!"

These were the words of Georg Handel, the barber
of Saxony, and they were thrust in no uncertain
terms upon the tousled head of his small son,
George Frederick.

However, somehow, through some unknown strain,
from some forgotten ancestor, the seed of music had
found its way into young Handel's heart and refused
to be dislodged. It is said that this small boy of six
managed to smuggle a clavichord into an out-of-the-
way attic room in his father's spacious house, and that
his practice hours were in secret, in the dead of night,
while the rest of the family slept.

Handel's father went to great length to "save" his
child from the unprofitable life of a vagabond
composer.

"Better that I sever your fingers from your hand,"
he once threatened. But what earthly power can
quench the fire of genius when God himself lights the
torch. Handel persisted, and his desire was fed by a
constant stream of inspiration that flowed into his
sensitive soul, and in spite of his father's objection the
boy had composed six sonatas by the time he had
reached his eleventh birthday.

Music became a lifelong passion with George
Frederick Handel. He was able to compose swiftly
and expertly. The well of his genius was inexhaustible;
and when the Duke of Weissenfels first noticed the
boy's talent, he urged the father to change his atti-
tude and encourage the child. A duke's word was not
to be taken lightly, and at last George Frederick was
placed under the musical tutorship of the great
organist, Zachau. He learned to play the violin, the
oboe, the bassoon, the clavichord, and the organ, and
from the inexhaustible well of his creativity issued
forty operas, many and varied pieces for the organ,

suites for full orchestras, concertos for strings, sonatas
for violins, and nineteen oratorios, the most famous of
which is the immortal The Messiah.

Because this small boy refused to be daunted, literal-
ly millions of music lovers will throng to varied
theaters, churches, and concert halls this Yuletide,
eager to hear triumphant renditions of The Messiah.
Thousands of voices will blend in ecstatic harmony in
their praises to God. Scores of instruments will yield
to the human touch of lips and hands in their inter-
pretation of the music of this master composer. People
will sit spellbound by the splendor of the music, and
there will, no doubt, be oh's and ah's of appreciation,
and eyes will be lifted, and hearts will find new hope.
But how many of these listeners will be aware of the
story behind the creation of this inspired masterpiece?

"My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?"
It was a worn, heartbroken George Frederick Handel
who muttered these words as he walked alone, down
a rain-drenched street in London.

The year was 1741. For forty years Handel had
written stately music for the aristocracy of London.
Kings and queens had given him honor and recogni-
tion. His music had taken root in London and had
"thrived in congenial soil." He received the appoint-
ment of official composer in the British court. He
had been sought after and applauded— then like a
meteor, its light all spent, he had fallen to earth. Court
society turned against him. Jealous rivals plotted to
break up his performances, a cerebral hemorrhage
threatened paralysis. A frigid winter gripped Eng-
land, and because there was no way of heating the
theaters, all engagements were cancelled. Handel
was caught in this avalanche. He was tired, poverty-
stricken, and hopeless.

Then one memorable night, after one of his frequent
wanderings through the streets of London, he returned
to his shabby dwelling to find a strange package on
his desk. Wearily, he unwrapped it to disclose a
manuscript bearing the (Continued on page 964)

DECEMBER 1960

Adults ivill find the following books good
reading :

SECRETS OF A HAPPY LIFE, David O. McKay

Compiled by Llewelyn R. McKay, 1960, Prentice-Hall, Inc.
Englewood Cliffs, Neio Jersey. 175 pages, $3.50.

Probably no one else in the world could give the answer to
what constitutes a happy life better than President David O.
McKay, whose own life has initiated happiness among count-
less thousands. First as a teacher of youth, and later of both
youth and adults, and more largely as a teacher of religion, he
has been concerned with the dissemination of truth in order
for true happiness to result.

He analyzes the factors that build happiness: home, educa-
tion, the individual in society, religion— with its many practical
dicta and especially with its ideals.

From the things he preaches, President McKay has built
his own life. As his son, Dr. McKay, states: "He advises no
one to do that which he does not do himself."

This is a book that should be on the bedside table for early

and late pondering by those who would build a good life.

. . " . -M. C. J.

ANSWERS TO GOSPEL QUESTIONS, Vol. Ill, Joseph Field-
ing Smith

Deseret Book Company, Salt Lake City, 1960. 233 pages, $2.50.

This third volume of Answers to Gospel Questions includes,
in addition to those which appeared in the Improvement Era
in the section "Your Question," additional answers to perplex-
ing problems which confront Latter-day Saints.

Although it is difficult to select from the innumerable an-
swers those which are most salient, there are some that seem

applicable to a wider group of people: Importance of the Sac-
rament meeting, Salvation of Women Whose Husbands Will Not
Embrace the Gospel, Keeping the Whole Law, Does Satan
Have Power to Answer Prayer? There are fifty-seven answers in
all— each one have a particular answer to some vital part of
Church doctrine.

Included in the contents also is a list of questions used in
volumes I and II, which should prove helpful to those who
would seek further answers.— M. C. /.

... SO SHALL YE REAP, selected addresses of Ezra Taft
Benson

Compiled by Reed A. Benson. Illustrated. Deseret Book Com-
pany, Salt Lake City, 1960. 351 pages, $4.95.

The Foreword by former President Herbert Hoover states,
in part: "The Church has a special distinction. In times of
unemployment and war they have taken care of their own
people without charge on the Treasury of the United States.
The Church has stood adamant for the Constitution both in
business and education." In the Introduction Elder Harold B.
Lee states, "His [Elder Benson's] voice in public service and
in his Church calling is as the voice of the trumpet giving
always 'the certain sound' to prepare all who would listen for
the 'battle' of life." And as Reed Benson stated in his preface,
"Men have taken fresh courage after looking on the life of
Ezra Taft Benson."

Divided into four sections with a biography at the end by
Merlo J. Pusey, the book includes some of the pertinent and
pithy addresses of Elder Benson dealing with Church, youth
and family, freedom and agriculture. And into all of it is
interwoven the philosophy of a man whose integrity has carried
him to the highest positions in both Church and State.

. . . so shall ye reap is a good book to read and ponder —
for it will encourage readers to sow well.— M. C. /.

896

THE IMPROVEMENT EBA

Merry, Reading Christmas

COLUMBIA RESEARCH GROUP, 3600 South Market Street,
Salt Lake City.

$49.95 for all records; $1.00 for excerpt sampling record.

How would you like to bring your family together and
listen to a delightful presentation of the Book of Mormon? Or
if you are to teach this book in the Melchizedek Priesthood
quorums next year as the course of study, you will want to
listen to the chapter by chapter reading of the records in addi-
tion to reading for yourself from the Book of Mormon itself.

The Book of Mormon has been one of our greatest mission-
aries to the world. In the November issue are some of the
stories of the conversions to the gospel from the Book of Mor-
mon as well as strong testimonies of the Book of Mormon.

These records, well-read and direct from the Book of Mormon
itself, will afford endless hours of enjoyment and profitable
study for any household that invests in them.— M. C. J.

Teens and youngsters will enjoy these
books:

UPON MY LIPS A SONG, Kate Smith

Funk and Wagnalls, New York, 1960. 213 pages, $3.95.

The story of Kate Smith's real struggle to reach fame will
make many a girl think twice about the hardships of leaving
home unless she has a really great talent. Kate Smith's feeling
that life should be emphasized as something more realistic
than just a "bowl of cherries" will transfer itself to the teen
reader. There is wholesome philosophy in the book.— M. C. J.

LIBBY-COME-LATELY, Jean Nielsen

Funk and Wagnalls, New York, 1960. 246 pages, $2.95.

Libby Gander, lately of Alaska, now of Bethel, California,
finds a place for herself in the town by organizing a Junior
Friends of the Library and earns the town's gratitude for
diplomatically wiping out the personal feud between Dr. Van
Hooten and Libby's aunt, the librarian, Emily Clarke. The new
library building that Libby helps promote brings real joy to the
community.— M. C. J.

PATRIOT'S LADY, Lons Hobart

Funk and Wagnalls, New York, 1960. 274 pages, $3.50.

It is good to get back into the early days of the founding of
the United States. In this lively book the story of Sally Living-
ston Jay, wife of John Jay, important in the establishing of
the young nation, is fascinatingly told in novel form. As a
statesman's wife (for her husband was president of the Conti-
nental Congress, later minister to Spain, and peace envoy to

Paris, and foreign secretary and governor of New York State)
Sally Livingston Jay played an important part.— M. C. J.

A MINNETONKA SUMMER, Borghild Dahl

E. P. Dutoon & Co., New York, 1960. 125 pages, $2.95.

Through the life of a young American-Norwegian girl,
Solveig Nordlund, the author develops a sound sense of values
for the teen who feels that she is inferior to the other young
people at the summer resort, since her clothes and customs are
old-fashioned. But they are sound values for all other young
women, too, and make interesting reading in the bargain.

-M. C. J.

ACCENT ON APRIL, Betty Cavanna

Morrow Junior Books, New York, 1960. 256 pages, $2.95.

This story of the McCall family and their interesting guest
Per Hedhmd of Sweden provides good reading for the teens,
in the house. And Betty Cavanna has long had a place in the
hearts of MIA young people— M. C. J.

DRUMS, RATTLES, AND BELLS, Larry Kettelkamp

William Morrow and Company, Inc., New York, 1960. $2.75.
(Age 8-12)

Percussion instruments, their history and descriptions, to-
gether with instructions for a child to make and play some
examples of each. — /. H. Z.

THE FORGOTTEN RAINBOW, Jack and LeeChristensen
William Morrow and Company, Inc., New York, 1960. $3.25.
(Age 4-8)

Prince Beldon of Beldonia had a beautiful castle, but he
wasn't happy. He decided he needed a wife. Three princesses
come from the north, the south, and the east, bearing rich
gifts. From the west came Princess Fronica, empty-handed,
but with a heart full of love and generosity. When Prince
Beldon offered the princesses anything they wanted, all she
asked was the lovely rainbow in the garden fountain.—/. H. Z.

LITTLE MONKEY, Jane Thayer

Illustrated by Seymour Flushman, William Morrow and Com-
pany, Inc., New York, 1959. $2.75.

(Age 4-8)

Dodo played all day on the island in the pond in the Paris
zoo. Every evening Albert came to put the monkeys in a cage
for the night. One night Dodo decided to stay out all night,
but something happened.—/. H. Z.

DECEMBER 1960

897

sill

■91

The Christmas season was approaching.
Alton MacCanlass was in no mood to enter
into its spirit.

He stood on the back porch of his small
house, located at the Bot of the Organ
Mountain. It was .just off the military
reservation and on the outskirts of Pesilla,
/tiny Mexicarylettlement. He looked up
at the pipe-like peaks of the mountain and
then out over the vast New Mexico semi-
desert.^^

Here, on that balmy fall morning, he
saw Pedro for the first time. The small lad,
riding his mangy, gray burro, waved his
sombrero and drew a rein on his beast
as if to stop for a neighborly call. Alton
turned a stiff back on the boy and walked
into his house. Pedro slapped his lazy
burro and rode on.

What right have a desert kid and a dirty
burro to intrude on my privacy? thought
Alton. I don't like kids anyway-or burros,
either.

He stalked through the four rooms of his
recently acquired house, thanking his luck
that he had so easily come by a lease on
this comfortable health-seeker's retreat. At
the same time he was seized by a sense of
loneliness and the disappointments of the
past months; and by the emptiness of the
desert country to which he had come to
forget-and to regain his health.

He had not expected Eloise to come with
him. No girl could take such a risk. It
was the fact that she was not willing to
wear his ring while she waited for the
recovery of his health that had thrown
him into this expanse of gloom.

"I'll wait for you, Alton, but of course
you can't expect me to hibernate," she said
as she handed him his ring.

"Of course not, darling." That was when
he began to freeze inside. The heat of the
desert had done nothing to warm his heart.

He was an artist. As his health lessened,

898

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

■

his creative work suffered. His once masterful tech-
nique became less effective. At his last exhibit in the
East there was none of the usual acclaim— no impetus
to future achievement.

Ill-health had reduced his hundred and seventy
pounds to a slim hundred and thirty. These changes
he could not ignore. They had shaken him to the
roots of his being. Faith in a God that had once
seemed personal to him was now dim. Faith in him-
self; where had he failed? Faith in his work; this he
would never renounce. He would rest and luxuriate
in the lightness of the desert air and the warmth of
the sun's rays. It would take time and patience, but
he would justify to himself, and the art world, his
faith in his ability to paint. He would conquer the
desert by discovering its strength and transmitting it
to canvas; while it in turn worked its healing magic
on his own body. And he would never love again.

One day as he sat dabbing at a canvas, trying to
capture the spiky spears of a yucca and its snowy
crown, he was startled by a youthful voice.

"Hi, Sefwr, you be great painter. I come through
your casa and see your pictures everywhere, but I
do not know them."

"Who cares?" snapped Alton. "Can't you see I'm
busy? Who are you and what do you want?"

"I'm Pedro, the goat herder. I bring leche to them
as needs it. But . . . but your picture, Senor, the yucca
that you are painting, it is too thin, like you. Look
across the desert and see how bold they be. They
march across the desert like a army. They hold their
white heads high. They have green skirts that sweep
the ground. Their roots cling to the earth to save
desert moisture. They, Senor, are just like desert
people, tall and strong, so they can make the good
stand."

Alton turned and faced the boy. "Where, Pedro,
did you learn such talk?"

"Mostly from the desert," said Pedro, his liquid
brown eyes as full of understanding as his words had
been. "But I go to the city sometimes. It is not far.
I see the great paintings. No one notice me, but I
listen. I hear what they say. Mr. LaVey, the fine art
man, he always there. I walk behind him and listen.
I learn about desert pictures. But mostly I see pic-

tures when I look at the desert."

"But your English, Pedro? You are an extraordinary
young chap, now a philosopher with beautiful English;
now a simple lad struggling with a tongue foreign
to you."

"Si, Senor," said Pedro, shifting his weight timidly,
"until this year, when I was twelve years old, I go to
the Academy and study the English. I love the
English and study it well. Now my father is dead,
and I quit the school to help Mamacita."

"I see," said Alton thoughtfully.

"Mr. Mac . . ." began Pedro timidly, "excuse if. . . ."

"Mac . . . Mac . . . indeed. . . ." Alton looked up in
surprise.

"I see Mac on all your paintings. Forgive if I say
wrong."

"Okay, okay," Alton gave Pedro the first faint sign
of friendship, a qualified smile. "Okay, you be Pedro,
I'll be Mac."

Pedro beamed. "Mr. Mac, hit me if I be bold, but
I tell you right. Go see the desert from the mountain,
over there. See it all— then you paint it."

"Huh," grunted Alton. "You may go now, Pedro.
I am busy."

Never was Alton to forget this first lesson in desert
landscaping.

Thereafter each morning a bottle of milk and three
fresh eggs were left at Alton's back door.

"Why do you ride so far to do this for me?" asked
Alton on the second morning.

"I need the money, Senor, to give to Mama for food.
You need leche to put meat on your bones. I save the
egg money for something special ... I buy Mama a
new coat for Christmas. She need it. If some money,
a few centavos, be left I buy for me a box of crayolas,
to paint pictures, like you, Senor."

After that Alton kept himself out of sight. He would
not be student to this slip of a desert boy; and he
would not become involved in Pedro's family affairs.

Then one day, under the milk and eggs, Alton
found a charcoal sketch. Without aid of color the
sketch had such depth and scope, such symmetry, that
he began to ask himself if this strange Pedro might
not be the embodiment of the desert spirit that he
himself had determined to discover.

(Continued on page 962)

DECEMBER 1960

899

PRESIDENT J. REUBEN CLARK, JR.

PRESIDENT DAVID O. McKAY

PRESIDENT HENRY D. MOYLE

DELBERT I_. STAPLEY

MARION G. ROMNEY

The Patriarch

ELDRED G. SMITH

A Portfolio of General Authorities

of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day

The First Presidency

The Quorum of the Twelve

JOSEPH FIELDING SMITH
LEGRAND RICHARDS

HAROLD B. LEE

RICHARD L. EVANS

SPENCER W. KIMBALL

GEORGE Q. MORRIS

EZRA TAFT BENSON

HUGH B. BROWN

MARK E. PETERSEN

HOWARD W. HUNTER

Saints at its 130th GENERAL CONFERENCE

on October 7, 8, and 9, 1960.

ALMA SONNE

JOHN LONGDEN

GORDON B. HINCKLEY

WILLIAM J. CRITCHLOW, JR.

NATHAN ELDON TANNER

ELRAY L. CHRISTIANSEN

STERLING W. SILL

HENRY D. TAYLOR

ALVIN R. DYER

FRANKLIN D. RICHARDS

LEVI EDGAR YOUNG

ANTOINE R. IVINS

The Assistants to the
Quorum of the Twelve

THEODORE M. BURTON

The First Council of the Seventy

S. DILWORTH YOUNG MILTON R. HUNTER

BRUCE R. McCONKIE

MARION D. HANKS

A. THEODORE TUTTLE

THORPE B. ISAACSON

JOSEPH I_. W1RTHLIN

CARL W. BUEHNER

The Presiding Bishopric

^ "WHAT
ABOUT
«t/^ JESUS

CHRIST?"

President David O. McKay

That is glorious. I am sure you will
agree with me that the singing of these
heautiful women,, our mothers, hears
evidence of the truth of the Lord's say-
ing, "The song of the righteous is a
prayer unto me." (D&C 25:12.) God
hless them!

"But when the Pharisees had heard
that he had put the Sadducees to si-
lence, they were gathered together.

"Then one of them, which was a
lawyer, asked him a question, tempting
him, and saying,

"Master, which is the great command-
ment in the law?

"Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love
the Lord thy God with all thy heart,
and with all thy soul, and with all thy
mind.

"This is the first and great command-
ment.

"And the second is like unto it, Thou
shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

"On these two commandments hang
all the law and the prophets." (Matthew
22:34-40.)

I am glad that text is in keeping with
the plea made by Brother Lewis at the
opening of the session in his invocation,
and that that spirit of faith in God and
love for one's fellows dominates this
session.

Many who deny his divinity declare
him to be the one perfect character,
the peerless personality of history. Mil-
lions accept him as the Great Teacher,
whose teachings, however, are not ap-
plicable to modern social conditions. A
few accept him for what he really is —
"the Only Begotten of the Father"; who
came into the world, even Jesus, to be
crucified for the world and to bear the
sins of the world.

Last Monday morning, October third,
the Premier of Soviet Russia threatened
that if the United Nations does not
reorganize as he demands, the commu-
nist bloc will "rely on their own
strength to block us." He also threat-
ened to ignore the United Nation's
peace-making machinery unless the Sec-
retary General of the United Nations
resign, and his position, that is, the

Add*ess delivered Friday morning, Oct. 7, 1960.

Secretary's position, be replaced by a
communist-styled, three-man presidium
armed with veto powers.

Who is this man who presumes to tell
the United Nations what to do? He is
a man who rejects the divinity of Jesus
Christ and denies the existence of God,
who is imbued with the false philosophy
of Karl Marx, whose aim in life was
"to dethrone God and destroy capital-
ism." He is a follower of Lenin, who
said, "I want children to hate their
parents who are not communists." The
followers of these men, to gain their
ends, "resort to all sorts of stratagems,
maneuvers, illegal methods, evasions,
and subterfuges." This atheistic atti-
tude, and the advice to hate others,
even one's own family, is just the oppo-
site of the spirit of love as manifest
and taught by the Savior. In sessions
in another part of the United States
arc men who believe as I have indi-
cated and who arc willing to resort to
any subterfuge, any scheme, that will
further their ends to dethrone God. We
appeal to God, who exists and lives, and
with whom we are in harmony this
morning — we have met in the name of
his Beloved Son.

About fifty years ago, Lord Balfour,
Prime Minister of Great Britain, deliv-
ered a lecture in the McEwen Hall of
the University of Edinburgh, upon the
subject, "The Moral Value which Unites
the Nations," — the moral values. In an
interesting and convincing manner, the
gentleman presented the fundamental
ties that unite the different nations of
the world: First, common knowledge;
second, common commercial interests;
third, the intercourse of diplomatic re-
lationships; fourth, the bonds of human
friendships.

The audience greeted his masterful
address with a great outburst of ap-
plause. As the presiding officer arose to
express his appreciation and that of the
audience, a Japanese student who was
doing graduate work at the university
stood up, and leaning over the balcony
said, "But Mr. Balfour, what about
Jesus Christ?"

Mr. Robin E. Spear, to whom Profes-
sor Lang related this incident, writes
as follows: "One could have heard a
pin drop in the hall. Everyone felt at
once the justice of the rebuke. The lead-
ing statesman of the greatest Christian
empire in the world had been dealing
with the different ties that are to unite
mankind and had omitted the one
fundamental and essential bond. And
everyone felt, too, the dramatic element
in the situation — that the reminder of
his forgetfulness had come from a Jap-
anese student from a faraway, non-
Christian land."

Nearly two thousand years ago,
Christ's chief apostle on one occasion,
when he was arraigned before the Jews
for having healed an impotent man,
made the following declaration:

"Be it known unto you all, and to
all the people of Israel, that by the
name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom
ye crucified, whom God raised from the
dead, even by him doth this man stand
here before you whole.

"This is the stone which was set at
nought of you builders, which is be-
come the head of the corner.

"Neither is there salvation in any
other: for there is none other name
under heaven given among men, where-
by we must be saved." (Acts 4:10-12.)

That was a most dramatic occasion,
and it took strength and fearlessness to
make that statement to those men, some
of whom had participated in Christ's
crucifixion. Peter, on that occasion, bore
a strong testimony to those people.
These officers warned Peter and John
not to preach Jesus Christ and him
crucified, but they heard Peter and John
answer as I have read, and they saw the
impotent man standing before them
healed. They counseled among them-
selves what to do. Returning, they cau-
tioned Peter and John not to preach
Jesus Christ, but Peter, as spokesman
under the inspiration of the Lord, an-
swered:

"Whether it be right in the sight of
God to hearken unto you more than
unto God, judge ye.

"For we cannot but speak the things
which we have seen and heard." (Ibid.,
4:19-20.)

The knowledge that Jesus is truly the
Son of the Living God had been de-
clared by Peter in the presence of his
Master on an occasion when Jesus and
his apostles were at Caesarea Philippi,
when Christ had asked his disciples,

". . . Whom do men say that I the
Son of man am? [a grammatical error,
by the way, which comes down through
the ages.]

"And they said, Some say that thou
art John the Baptist; some, Elias; and
others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets.

"[And Jesus] saith unto them, But
whom say ye that I am?"

"And Simon Peter, [the spokesman,
fearless, impetuous by nature answered],
Thou art the Christ, the Son of the
living God.

"And Jesus answered and said unto
him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona,
[Simon, son of Jona] ; for flesh and blood
hath not revealed it unto thee, but my
Father which is in heaven.

"And I say also unto thee, That thou
art Peter [Simon's other name, which
means a rock], and upon this rock [of
revelation] I will build my church; and
the gates of hell shall not prevail against
it." (Matthew 16:13-18. Italics added.)

Comparatively speaking, only a small
group of men and women knew him as
he really is — the Son of God, the Re-
deemer of mankind. This testimony has
been revealed to every sincere man and
woman who has conformed to the prin-
ciples of the gospel of Jesus Christ, who

904

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

has obeyed the ordinances and become
entitled to and has received the Spirit
of God and that of the Holy Ghost.
Every individual stands independent in
his sphere in that testimony, just as
these thousands of incandescent lamps
which make Salt Lake City so brilliant
at night, each one of which stands and
shines in its own sphere, yet the light
in it is produced by the same power,
the same energy from which all the
other lights receive their energy. So each
individual in the Church stands inde-
pendently in his sphere, independently
in the knowledge that God lives, that
the Savior is the Redeemer of the world,
and that the gospel of Jesus Christ
has been restored through Joseph Smith
the Prophet.

"To some it is given," says the Lord
in the Doctrine and Covenants, "by the
Holy Ghost to know that Jesus is the
Son of God, and that he was crucified
for the sins of the world." (D&C 46:13.)

It is to these I refer who stand firm
upon the rock of revelation in the tes-
timony that they bear to the world. But
the Lord says further that there are
those to whom it is given to believe
upon the testimony of the words of
others. Note that. They believe upon
the words of others that they may also
receive salvation if they continue faith-
ful. For all these, however, there comes
a testimony also of daily experience. The
members of the Church throughout the
world find confirmation of their testi-
mony in every performance of duty.
They know that the gospel teaches them
to be better individuals, that obedience
to the principles of the gospel makes
them stronger men and truer women.
Every day such knowledge comes to
them, and they cannot gainsay it. They
know that obedience to the gospel of
Jesus Christ makes them happier, better,
and truer husbands, true and honored
wives, obedient children. They know
that obedience to the principles of the
gospel makes them in every respect ideal
home builders. The ideal is there. They
sense it in their minds. They cannot
gainsay it. They know it, and they know
that transgression of these principles
will have the opposite effect upon their
individual lives and upon their home
lives. They know that obedience to

"Who are the Saints? All those
who believe in Jesus Christ and keep
his commandments. And who may
be Saints? All the inhabitants of
the earth, for Jesus said, 'Come unto
me, all ye ends of the earth, and be
ye saved.'"

—Discourses of Brigham Young,
- page 28.

the gospel fosters true brotherhood and
fellowship among mankind. They know
that they are better citizens by virtue
of obedience to the laws and ordinances.
So, as they go through their daily
activities and apply religion in their
weekly vocations, the truth of the gos-
pel becomes exemplified in their lives,
thus with a testimony of the Spirit,
the testimony of reason, and the testi-
mony of daily experience, members of
the Church throughout the world stand
impregnable.

I have always been strongly im-
pressed with a statement by Thomas
Nixon Carver in his book, The Religion
Worth Having, wherein he says:

"The church that can say to the un-
churched, 'Our way is best because it
works best, our people are efficient,
prosperous, and happy because we are a
body who aid one another in the pro-
ductive life; we waste none of our sub-
stance in vice, luxury, or ostentation;
we do not dissipate our energy in
brawling, gambling, or unwholesome
habits; we conserve our resources of body
and mind and devote them to the up-
building of the Kingdom of God, which
is not a mystical, but a real kingdom;
it is a body of people dominated by
ideas of productivity, which is mutual
service. We do not strive for the things
that satisfy but for the moment and
then leave a bad taste; we strive for the
things which build us up and enable
us and our children to become strong,
to flourish, and to conquer. We strive
to make ourselves worthy to receive
the world by fitting ourselves to use the
world more productively than others.
We believe that obedience to God means
obedience to the laws of nature, which
are but the manifestations of His will,
and we try by painstaking study to ac-
quire a most complete and exact knowl-
edge of that will, in order that we may
conform ourselves to it. We believe
that a reverence for God is respect for
these laws; that meekness is teachable-
ness and willingness to learn by obser-
vation and experience. By practicing
this kind of meekness or teachableness
we believe that we shall inherit the
earth, whereas the unmeek, the unreach-
able, who are dominated by pride of
tradition, shall not. We offer you hard
Work, frugal fare, severe discipline, but
a share in the conquest of the world
for the. religion of the productive life.'
Such a church," he continues, "is
founded upon the rock of economic ef-
ficiency and the gates of hell shall not
prevail against it."

My testimony, as yours, is that this
Church of Jesus Christ can offer to the
world all the good things which this
author is looking for, and more, because
God has revealed more in the govern-
ment and conduct of his Church.

Brethren and sisters, the testimony
of the gospel is an anchor to the soul
in the midst of confusion and strife.

Knowledge of God and his laws means
stability, means contentment, means
peace, and with that a heart full of love
reaching out to our fellow men, offering
the same blessings, the same privileges.
Love will beget tolerance and. kindness.

Now I suggest that during the next
month or so, when our towns and cities
and states will be more or less stirred
by political contention, that we restrain
our tempers, control our tongues, and try
to manifest charity and love for one
another. Let us not besmear. our brother's
reputation. I mean that while we are
urging our particular- political belief,
that we avoid dealing in personalities.
We cannot afford to hurt our brother's
feelings and wound him.

Leaders in the Church, in fact all
members thereof," are striving to estab-
lish the kingdom of God. Let us hold
to that fact as the anchor of our soul
and then breathe forth charity and love
to those who "may riot see just as we do.

"Oh, brother Man! fold to thy heart thy

' brother,
Where pity dwells, the peace of God is

there;
To worship rightly is to love each other,
Each smile a hymn, each kindly deed a

prayer.

"Follow with reverent steps the great

example
Of Him whose holy work was 'doing

good';
So shall the wide earth seem our Father's

temple,
Each loving life a psalm of gratitude.

"Then shall all shackles fall; the stormy

clangor
Of wild war music o'er the earth shall

cease;
Love shall tread out the baleful fire of

anger,
And in its ashes plant the tree of peace!"
(John Greenleaf Whittier)

In conclusion, let us stand with our
hearts centered and Our aims firmly
fixed upon this eternal truth— that the
gospel of Jesus Christ is among men for
the redemption and salvation of the
human family. Let us go forth in that
spirit "and deal with our fellow men in
the spirit of love and kindness. Let us
work in our councils, in our quorums,
guided by that same spirit.

God grant that we may remain true
to the Church, that we -may ever be
found defending the men whom God
has called to guide us, and realize that
harmony with them means that we are
in harmony with God, for he sustains
them. I pray for this blessing for all
of us throughout the entire "world, and
that each member may carry the re-
sponsibility of his membership in the
Church preparatory- to the establishment
of the kingdom of God, in the name of
Jesus Christ. Amen.

DECEMBER 1960.

905

"I AM THE LIFE, THE
LIGHT, THE WAY, AND

THE TRUTH;

AND THE

LAW"

President J. Reuben Clark, Jr.

of the First Presidency

My brothers and sisters, fellow members
of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-
day Saints, the only true Church on the
face of the earth at this time:

The Lord has been good to me in
giving me the physical strength to be
with you this morning. I often facetious-
ly say as long as you do not think with
your heels, it does not make much
difference what they do, it is only when
the Lord or somebody begins to interfere
with your head (laughter) — I am uncer-
tain on that point, personally. But I am
grateful to be with you to mingle my
testimony with the testimony of those
who have gone before, that this is the
work of God, that we are doing his
service, that we are working under his
plan, that we are instructing the world
in general, and ourselves in particular,
in the principles of his gospel.

He said to the ancients on this conti-
nent, "I am the Law," and such are his
words. We need to look no further
than to his words to get therefrom the
guides and the principles which will lead
us to eternal life. Time and time and
time again, he said, sometimes involving
the four principles, sometimes three of
them, "I am the life, the light, the way,
and the truth." And such is his message
to us. Such are the principles by which
our lives are to be guided.

I renew to you this morning the testi-
mony I have given to you for over a
quarter of a century, I believe every
conference, a testimony that God lives,
that Jesus is his Son and is the Christ,
a testimony that the Father and the
Son appeared to the Prophet, thus
settling, so far as we are concerned,
forever that the Father and the Son
were personalities and that Jesus spoke
truly when he said, ". . . he that hath
seen me hath seen the Father; . . ."
(John 14:9.)

My brothers and sisters, the way has
been laid down for us. We have no
choice and no necessity for anything
beyond his words and the revelations
of his mind and will which he makes
known to his prophet, who is called,
ordained and set apart, sustained by

Address delivered Sunday morning, Oct. 9, 1960.

your vote to be the prophet, seer, and
revelator of this Church. I renew again
my testimony that the Savior with the
Father came to the Prophet Joseph, that
the Prophet and his associates through
the assistance given to associates, set
up this Church, the only true Church,
as I have already said, that exists upon
the face of the earth.

How I wish we could carry this
thought, this belief, this testimony in
our hearts to the exclusion of all others.
This is a time, nationally, when it hap-
pens that, so far as my memory goes, for
the first time, the strictly religious prob-
lem has been thrown into the campaign.
Be not disturbed. We are not concerned
ecclesiastically. We have the truth.
Ours is the priesthood. We are the ones
whom God has set up under a system of
government which he revealed, where
we have one man standing at the head,
sustained as I have already said, by
your vote, as the prophet, seer, and
revelator of the Lord to his people. No
one else has any right to declare the
word of the Lord to this people.

I sometimes hear of persons, little
groups, who undertake to direct us along
lines that they think would be useful,
politically. It is time for us to take
notice and act when our prophet, seer,
and revelator tells us what to do. We
are not bound by any small group.

What a glorious thing it is to belong
to the Lord's Church. As I have al-
ready said, it was the Lord who said,
"I am the life, the light, the way, and
the truth," and who said to the people
on this continent, "I am the law," which
meant, of course, that by his atoning
sacrifice he fulfilled all that the law of
Moses contemplated and provided for,
and he alone is the one to whom we
look.

Never forget those words of his to
Martha, when she said, "... I know that
he [Lazarus] shall rise again in the
resurrection at the last day."

Christ said to her, "I am the resurrec-
tion, and the life: he that believeth in
me, though he were dead, . . ." (allud-
ing, as I believe, to our ordinances for
the dead) ". . . yet shall he live:

"And whosoever liveth and believeth
in me shall never die. . . ." (John 11:24-

"And this is life eternal," said the
Savior in the great prayer, "that they
might know thee the only true God, and
Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent."
(Ibid., 17:3.)

And the great purposes of the Lord,
the great purposes of the Father, were
declared to Moses: ". . . this is my work
and my glory — to bring to pass the
immortality and eternal life of man."
(Moses 1:39.)

How can we, as members of this
Church, forget that great principle?
How can we fail to keep his command-
ments and to go forward as he has
directed, for that will bring to us the

immortality and eternal life which God
promised. And I would like to say — I
was about to conclude, to the brethren
of the Church, but unfortunately I fear
I must include the sisters: someday, as a
beginning to your transgression, you may
have to determine whether a cigaret is
worth more than what the Lord prom-
ised; someday, you will have to make
the same determination about a drink
of whiskey; someday, you may have to
determine whether you prefer what the
Lord has promised to an illicit date.
You who have been through the temple
of Almighty God, know your covenants,
your obligations. Never forget them.
Keep the commandments of the Lord.

Very early in his ministry, the Savior,
in that great conversation between him
and Nicodemus, said that the Father
sent the Savior to redeem the world,
not to condemn it. The Lord never
condemns the individual, except on rare
occasions. He condemns the sin. And
I can never forget that the most scath-
ing denunciation that I know of in our
literature, scriptural or otherwise, is
that denunciation which the Savior
made, and which is recorded in the
latter chapters of Matthew, against
hypocrisy. He leaves one almost with
the persuasion that nothing is so bad
as that.

And when you think what hypocrisy
may do — lead you to following a life of
falsehood, making you pretend to be
what you are not, deceiving your fellow
men, sometimes deceiving your wives
and your children! But there is one
whom you do not deceive, and that is
Christ, our Lord. He knows all. Per-
sonally, I have felt that nobody need
keep much of a record about me, except
what I keep myself in my mind, which
is a part of my spirit. I often question
in my mind, whether it is going to re-
quire very many witnesses in addition
to my own as to my wrongdoing, and I
have frequently thought, in making
funeral sermons — I wonder how many
of us there are, who, if it became known
that Jesus was out here at Wendover,
and would be happy to see all who
came to see him, Jesus our Lord, who
knows all that we have done, all that
we have thought, could read our minds
as we would read a book — I wonder how
many of us would have the courage to
go out to Wendover and pay him a
visit. And yet if we were not willing,
had not the courage, it is because we
have not lived and thought and believed
as we should. To me, that is one great
test of how well I am prepared to meet
my Maker.

The Lord helps us. He will give of
his own Spirit even as much as we are
prepared to accept. "I am the way, the
truth, the life, and the light. I am the
law," said the Savior.

Let us try always to learn what the
Lord wants. If we are living the kind
of lives we should live, that I hope we

906

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

do live, we will find that no question
ever arises in our minds for determina-
tion as to whether or not we should do
a good deed, take a good course. The
question comes only when we are think-
ing of doing something we should not
do. And on that point, may I say just
a word. "Prayer is the soul's sincere
desire." And in praying, no matter what
our words may be, there will be in the
back of our minds the real prayer, the
real desire, and that will be controlling.

The Lord is merciful. He overlooks
mucb. He has to. Think of his life,
what he did, what he said. That is your
guide. We sometimes think that the
Savior lived in a Palestine that was free
from trouble, that there were no
murders, no robbings, no thievings.
Have you ever wondered a little why
it was that Peter on that last night in
the Garden happened to be armed with
a sword? His Master's and his own
message had never been to fight in that
way. The Savior said he would make
families fight among themselves, that
their real enemy sometimes would be
father or mother — but I have always
understood that to mean the warfare be-
tween right and wrong, the warfare be-
tween his sayings and the sayings of
the world.

Do you think of the Savior as living
in a Roman civilization with all of the
transgressions, all of the temptations,
all of the evils of that great civilization?
Yet so it was. And yet you will find
nothing in the New Testament of any
evils the Savior ever did of the many
existing in the Roman Empire. I do
not remember any reference, allusion, or
statement given in the New Testament
showing that the Savior patronized the
Roman circus or the great amphitheaters
which almost crowded the Palestine in
which he lived.

Taking the New Testament alone, you
will gain little idea of the kind of life
the Romans led in Palestine, the kind
of life that the Christ condemned, and
yet as I have already said, it has seemed
to me that the one sin that the Savior
condemned as much as any other was
the sin of hypocrisy — the living of the
double life, the life we let our friends
and sometimes our wives believe, and
the life we actually live.

I repeat what I have already said, we
may think nobody knows of our hy-
pocrisy. As a matter of fact, I doubt
if that assumption can be true. Some-
body does know. But the Lord also
knows, and we make up the record here
in our minds — that part of us which I
think is part of our eternal souls. We
know, and we will never forget.

May the Lord give us strength and
power to overcome evil. May he give
to us men the power to magnify our
priesthood. May he give to us the
knowledge that we hold in our hands
through our priesthood and the exer-
cise of faith, the most powerful force of

which we have any knowledge. It
transcends the forces of nature, as the
Lord showed on more than one occasion.
It is the force by which the worlds were
made. It is at our command, if we so
live that we are entitled to it. But it is
my faith and my belief that the Lord
never gives anyone faith, it being his
gift, that will defeat his purposes.

And when we pray, as I have said
to you on many occasions, I am sure,
pray as he did in Gethsemane. And
have you ever been struck with the
thought that here was the Son praying
to the Father to let the cup of crucifixion
pass by, ". . . nevertheless not my will,
but thine, be done." (Luke 22:42.) A
few days before in the temple, he had
said, "Father, save me from this hour:
but for this cause came I unto this
hour." (John 12:27.)

I have been struck with the fact that
Deity himself, half mortal for the time,
found himself asking that his destiny
might be changed, but he finished his
petition, "nevertheless not my will, but
thine, be done."

In that spirit we should always ap-
proach our Heavenly Father in prayer.
And when we go to our Heavenly Father
for advice, let us not go to him with
the request that he confirm us in our
desh-es, but ask humbly and in full faith
that he will give to us of our desires, no
matter what they are or concerning
whom they may be, that which accords
with his will.

I am most grateful to be with you this
morning, to mingle my voice with the
voices of the other brethren who have
testified to you during this conference.
I have listened to you during the entire
conference. I have enjoyed what has
been said. I have regretted my absence.
I am grateful that the Lord has per-

mitted me to come this morning, and I
thank President McKay for giving me
the opportunity to say the few unpre-
meditated words I have said.

I pray the blessings of the Lord to be
upon you and upon all of us. I pray
the blessings of the Lord to be upon
him, the prophet, seer, and revelator of
the Church and the President thereof.
I pray that we will give him the full
measure of support that we have cove-
nanted to give him when we sustained
him by our uplifted hands. That is a
marvelous covenant we make, and as
we make it here, we bind the Church,
for this is a constituent assembly speak-
ing for the Church. God grant his
blessings may be always with us, to help
us, to build us up, to keep us in the
straight and narrow path, even until
the end of life, and may he enable us
to bestow such an impress upon our
families as will enable them in turn to
follow his paths, never forgetting and
applying strictly the great principle he
announced, "I am the way, the truth,
the life, and the light," and as to this
continent, "I am the law," to the end
that we ourselves and our families after
us, may be saved and exalted and re-
united in the hereafter, I humbly pray
in the name of Jesus. Amen.

As President Clark turned to
leave the pulpit, he said,

"Let me tell a story. I remem-
ber when Sullivan and Kilrain
were fighting a championship
down in New Orleans, I believe it
was, when I was a kid, in the 76th
round, or thereabouts, word came
back, as I remember, 'Kilrain is
slightly disfigured, but still in the

• 3 33

ring.

WINTER DREAM

BY ALMA ROBISON HIGBEE

All day the snow fell heavily; and now

The man walked to the house, the milk pails white

With foam. The snow lay heavy on every bough

And all the land was aspen-glowed with light.

The house received him, four walls held secure,

His wife and children, the centered dream.

He partook of homey fare, and then the lure

Of the open hearth drew him to the fireside's gleam.

Two seed catalogues had come, bright colored, new.

Like magic carpets they transported him

Beyond this night of firelight woven through

To crow-loud fields beyond the pasture's time,

As he read and dreamed of springtime's emerald start,

With cold outside and April in his heart.

DECEMBER 1960

907

THE PEACE

THAT COMES

THROUGH

RIGHTEOUSNESS

President Henry D. Moyle
of the First Presidency

President Clark called during the noon
recess and wanted you all to know how
much he appreciated the inspired mes-
sage of President McKay delivered at
the beginning of the morning session,
and how much he regretted not being
present with us here today. He wanted
me to extend his greeting to you all, and
I am sure that he would appreciate our
united faith and prayers in his behalf
that he might yet meet with us before
the conference is over, in keeping with
his innermost desires.

It is a great privilege, my brethren and
sisters, to be with you this afternoon and
to have this wonderful opportunity of
bearing witness to the truths of the gos-
pel. There is one thing in the world to-
day above all else which people are
seeking after, and that is peace.

The fundamental purpose of the or-
ganization of the Church is to establish
peace upon the earth.

President McKay recently told us that,
"peace is the exemption from individual
troubles, from family brawls, from na-
tional difficulties. Peace does not come
to the transgressor of law. Peace comes
by obedience to law — peace to the indi-
vidual that he may be at peace with
God, at peace in the home, and in the
neighborhood. The spirit of the world
is antagonistic to the establishment of
peace. The law of nature seems to be
the survival of the fittest at all costs.
But peace can come into the world only
through obedience to the gospel of Jesus
Christ." Seek first the kingdom of God
and his righteousness. His teaching re-
garding arbitration as a means of set-
tling difficulties, if applied by nations,
would do away with war.

"The gospel is a complete way of life,
and the true plan of life brings joy and
peace," says President McKay. Funda-
mental to the doctrines of the Church
is the declaration of Father Lehi:

"Adam fell that men might be; and
men are, that they might have joy."
(2 Nephi 2:25.)

The present teachings of our President
are not the development of a philosophy

Address delivered Friday afternoon, Oct. 7, 1960.

by the wisdom of men that changes with
time and experience. They do not result
from the trial and error of improvement.
They are not discovered as the result of
laboratory experiments on the one hand
or study of the past, present, or future
on the other hand. They are eternal
truths taught to the children of men by
the prophets of God, ancient and mod-
ern. The truths of the gospel are un-
changeable. They are infallible. The
Savior of mankind — our Redeemer, the
Son of the Living God, the Lord of lords
and King of kings, who rules and reigns
over this universe, brought peace to this
earth as he dwelt among the children
of men in the flesh. He is the man of
peace. He came with a promise: "Bles-
sed are the peacemakers; for they shall
be called the children of God." (Matt.
5:9.)

Except with peace in our hearts we
cannot be the children of God. This
follows just as certainly as do all the
promises given us by our Master in his
Sermon on the Mount. Surely we can-
not expect to see God if we are not pure
in heart. We bear witness to the world
by virtue of the power and authority of
the Holy Priesthood of God which we
bear that the words of his mouth con-
tained in the sacred Beatitudes were not
platitudes or trite sayings to catch the
ear of man, spoken by a humanitarian,
but on the contrary, they are the
words of God spoken by his Son Jesus
Christ, upon which all the children of
men can place their trust unfalteringly
and conform their lives, their thoughts
and actions, to merit in this life and in
the life to come all the blessings prom-
ised those who are faithful and obedient
to his teachings — not only the Sermon
on the Mount, but all that he taught
during his ministry here upon this earth
as he sojourned among men, and all that
he has revealed to his prophets to the
present time.

John, in his Gospel, says: "These
things I have spoken unto you," [quot-
ing the Savior] "that in me ye might
have peace. In the world ye shall have
tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have
overcome the world." (John 16:33.)

Paul said: ". . . let the peace of God
rule in your hearts. . . ." (Col. 3:15.)

Unfortunately, many in the world,
both individuals and nations, will ig-
nore the teachings of Christ and deny
his divinity. With two powers upon
earth exerting their influence upon man-
kind this result is inevitable. They,
through their own conduct, their own
choice, do not qualify for the enjoyment
of peace, and peace will not be theirs.
The history of the world has already al-
together too clearly demonstrated that
the farther we depart from the gospel of
Jesus Christ, the greater is the distress
and tribulation under which we live.

Should those who keep the command-
ments of God have any fear for their
own security and happiness? This is an

interesting question, and this again has
been answered so often in the recent
ministry of President David O. McKay.
He assures us that we need have no
worry. We will never be left in the
dark, and we should have no concern
other than to follow the leadership God
has given us here upon the earth.

We are the children of promise as long
as we keep the commandments of God.
I have no doubt it will take continuous
effort, however, upon our part. These
are not blessings which will flow to us
automatically merely because we ask for
them. We will be justified, however, if
we follow all that God reveals through
his servants, the prophets. We have
been given direction, sometimes thought
of as temporal in its nature, such as
tithing, fast offerings, the welfare pro-
gram, the Word of Wisdom, chastity,
obedience to the law of the land, and
others. Whatever their temporal aspect
may be, they are given to us to build
us up spiritually. We can draw no hard
and fast line between temporal and
spiritual. All that is good is spiritual.

So we can well afford to ask ourselves
the question: Can we expect the bless-
ings of peace if we ignore the Word of
Wisdom, for example? Will we be pre-
pared to take advantage of the ways
and means our Father in heaven may
make available for us to retain our peace
in times of great emergency, indeed at
all times, if we are not physically fit?
I have no doubt God will require us to
be sound in mind and body to carry
on the work of his priesthood at home
and abroad, at least as far as we by
our own efforts can retain our bodily
and spiritual health and strength. We
cannot be justified in destroying our-
selves through our disobedience, no mat-
ter how limited our conduct in this di-
rection may be.

It is an inspiration to me, and I hope
it will be to you, to reflect for a mo-
ment upon the teachings we have re-
ceived through our inspired prophets in
these latter days. Though times have
changed, and conditions in the world
are different, neither the hearts of men
nor the revelations of God to his people
through his prophets have changed. We
read in the Holy Bible:

"Surely the Lord God will do nothing,
but he revealeth his secret unto his serv-
ants the prophets." (Amos 3:7.)

I know by the testimony of the Holy
Ghost that is in me that this declaration
of Amos is literally true in the ministry
of President David O. McKay as it was
in the life of Joseph Smith and those
who followed the first Prophet in these
latter-days in this high and holy office.
"It is out of the abundance of the heart
that man speaketh," said Brigham
Young, "and the man who tells ' you
words of life is the man who can save
you."

What Joseph Smith said in 1844 in
principle is largely applicable today,

908

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

although our problems are somewhat
different and the remedy prescribed
unique to the solution of the specific
problem that then confronted the na-
tion. The nation did not accept his
solution, which was inspired of God.
Had his direction been given to the
problem, we all know what the result
would have been — no bloodshed. Both
the Civil War and its aftermath, with
us even now, and the economic loss of
both would have been avoided. What
happened to those who followed his
leadership and direction? Even though
the Prophet Joseph was martyred, two
months after this solution to our nation-
al ills was publicly given, the Saints
were driven from their peaceful homes
in the states to a haven of safety in the
fastness of this mountain region. That
is where they were when the Civil War
began.

Certainly God works in a mysterious
way, his wonders to perform. Who
would have ever thought among the in-
habitants of Nauvoo in the days of the
final persecution that they were being
driven from their homes by their ene-
mies against their will and against their
better judgment, only to wake up one
day and find that the Lord had pre-
served them in a land of peace, even in
the midst of the greatest of all civil
wars. Who doubts that the Lord can
do what he pleases with his people to-
day?

I have implicit faith in the words of
the Prophet when he tells us today that
all we need to worry about is to keep
the commandments of God, and peace
will be ours. We do not know when
or where or what exactly may happen.
It is therefore foolish and impossible to
conjecture on the nature of the relief
or protection or security designed for the
future accomplishment of God's purpose.

This, however, we do know: that God
lives and in him we can trust, and
through our obedience are now free from
fear or doubt or insecurity, and shall re-
main so always, as long as we retain
the right through our faithfulness to call
upon him for the blessings which he
has promised the faithful.

I conceive of peace as something
which we might all enjoy, even in
the midst of future wars. We may
suffer trials and tribulations. We
may suffer from the loss of our loved
ones, but let us stop for a moment and
call just two instances to mind. I think
of the Prophet Joseph that night after he
had left Nauvoo with some of his close
brethren and crossed over to the other
side of the river to Montrose, and there
the question was should he go on, or
should he go back? It was during these
days that the Prophet said that he was
devoid of offense toward any man, and
that he would be taken as a lamb to
the slaughter, but does anybody have
any doubt in his mind but that the
peace of God was in his heart and in

his soul and gave him the strength and
the courage and the power of his priest-
hood to fulfil his mission here upon the
earth as God might decree?

The other great example, of course,
supersedes all else in human knowledge
and understanding, and that is the in-
tercessory prayer of the Lord and Savior
Jesus Christ as he prayed to his Father
in heaven in the Garden of Gethsemane.
But there was peace in his heart when
he said, "Nevertheless, Father, thy will,
not mine, be done." (Luke 22:42.)

Now that peace can come into our
hearts, no matter what the circumstances
may be, and no matter what process
or what circumstance the Lord may use
to bring his faithful people the peace
which he has promised them. I have
an abiding conviction that if that peace

"God for His service needeth not
proud work of human skill;

They please Him best who labour
most in peace to do His will."

—Wordsworth, The Poefs Dream.

is given to us and we are called upon
to lose our lives or the lives of our loved
ones, that we will have the absolute
assurance, as did the Prophet Joseph,
that we would die in the Lord, and
when we die in the Lord we have ful-
filled the will of the Master here upon
this earth, to his pleasure and to his
satisfaction, and more can be gained by
none of us.

No greater power can exist upon the
earth than the power of the priesthood —
a gift of God to us — calling upon us to
exercise our power as elders in Israel to
bring all nations which permit us within
their borders to a knowledge of the
truth; to draw out those nations, not
necessarily physically, but into these
stakes of Zion which are being and will
continue to be organized in the various
countries of the world. These men and
women through their faith, conversion,
and their faithfulness will join with us
as recipients of these greatest of all bless-
ings which the Lord has in store for his
chosen people. So, neither they nor we
need to worry about our security when
we know that our welfare will be taken
care of directly from the throne of God
on High.

I first quoted from President David
O. McKay's teachings of a short time
ago, and now I want to just quote a
word or two from the other Presidents
of the Church to show how uniform
the Lord has revealed his will to his
prophets in these latter days.

Joseph Smith said:

"Make honor the standard with all
men. Be sure that good is rendered
for evil in all cases; and the whole

nation, like a kingdom of kings and
priests, will rise up in righteousness,
and be respected as wise and worthy on
earth, and as just and holy for heaven,
by Jehovah, the Author of perfec-
tion. . . ."

Brigham Young said: "Great peace
have they who love the law of the Lord
and abide in his commandments. Our
belief will bring peace to all men and
good will to all the inhabitants of the
earth. It will induce all who sincerely
follow its dictates to cultivate righteous-
ness and peace; to live peaceably in their
families; to praise the Lord morning
and evening; to pray with their families,
and will so fill them with the spirit of
peace that they will never condemn or
chasten any one unless it is well de-
served." (Brigham Young, Discourses,
pp. 223, 449.)

It is interesting to see what John
Taylor in his day said: "This peace is
the gift of God alone, and it can be
received only from him by obedience
to his laws. If any man wishes to intro-
duce peace into his family or among
his friends, let him cultivate it in his
own bosom; for sterling peace can only
be had according to the legitimate rule
and authority of heaven and obedience
to its laws." (John Taylor — The Gospel
Kingdom, page 319.)

Wilford Woodruff said: "Put your
trust in God and rely on his promises,
living up to the light and knowledge you
possess; and all will be well with you
whether living or dying." (Discourses
of Wilford Woodruff, p. 260.)

President Lorenzo Snow, from a docu-
ment published in the Deseret News of
Jan. 1, 1901:

"A new century dawns upon the world
today. The hundred years just com-
pleted were the most momentous in the
history of man upon this planet. It
would be impossible to make even a brief
summary of the notable events, the
marvelous developments, the grand
achievements, and the beneficial inven-
tions and discoveries, which mark the
progress of ten decades now left behind
in the ceaseless march of humanity.
The very mention of the nineteenth
century suggests advancement, improve-
ment, liberty, and light. Happy are we
to have lived amidst its wonders and
shared in the richness of its treasures of
intelligence.

"The lessons of the past century
should have prepared us for the duties
and glories of the opening era. It ought
to be the age of peace, of greater progress,
of the universal adoption of the golden
rule. Barbarism of the past should be
buried. War with its horrors should
be but a memory. The aim of nations
should be fraternity and mutual great-
ness. The welfare of humanity should
be studied instead of the enrichment of
a race or the extension of an empire.
Awake, ye monarchs of the earth and
rulers among nations and gaze upon the

DECEMBER I960

909

scene on which the early rays of the
rising millennial day gild the morning
of the twentieth century!

"The power is in your hands to pave
the way for the coming of the King of
kings, whose dominion will be over all
the earth. Disband your armies; turn
your weapons of strife into implements
of industry; take the yoke from the necks
of the people; arbitrate your disputes;
meet in royal congress and plan for
union instead of conquest, for the ban-
ishment of poverty, for the uplifting of
the masses, and for the health, wealth,
enlightenment, and happiness of all
tribes and peoples and nations. Then
shall the twentieth century be to you
the glory of your lives and the lustre of

your crowns, and posterity will sing
your praises, while the Eternal One shall
place you on high among the mighty. . . .

"In the eighty-seventh year of my age
on earth, I am full of earnest desire for
the benefit of humanity. I wish all a
Happy New Year. . . . May justice
triumph and corruption be stamped out.
And may virtue, chastity, and honor pre-
vail, until evil shall be overcome and
the earth shall be cleansed from wicked-
ness. Let these sentiments, as the voice
of the 'Mormons' in the mountains of
Utah, go forth to the whole world, and
let all people know that our wish and
our mission are for the blessing and
salvation of the entire human race.

"May the twentieth century prove the

happiest, as it will be the grandest, for
all the ages of time, and may God be
glorified in the victory that is coming
over sin, sorrow, misery, and death.
Peace be unto you all."

Joseph F. Smith said: "There is only
one thing that can bring peace into the
world. It is the adoption of the gospel
of Jesus Christ, rightly understood,
obeyed and practiced by rulers and
people alike." (Joseph F. Smith, Gospel
Doctrine, 1928 ed., page 529.) I love
such words of scripture.

And President Grant said: "This gos-
pel of Jesus Christ which the world
says is a delusion, a snare, and a fraud,
[yet] to each and every man who goes
out to proclaim it, and who lives an

CRY
REPENTANCE

President Joseph Fielding Smith
of the Council of the Twelve

I wish to read a part of the instruction
given by our Redeemer to his disciples
on this continent just before he left
them.

"And my Father sent me that I might
be lifted up upon the cross; and after
that I had been lifted up upon the cross,
that I might draw all men unto me, that
as I have been lifted up by men even so
should men be lifted up by the Father,
to stand before me, to be judged of
their works, whether they be good or
whether they be evil —

"And for this cause have I been lifted
up; therefore, according to the power
of the Father I will draw all men unto
me, that they may be judged according
to their works.

"And it shall come to pass, that whoso
repenteth and is baptized in my name
shall be filled; and if he endureth to the
end, behold, him will I hold guiltless

Address delivered Saturday morning, Oct. 8, 1960.

before my Father at that day when I
shall stand to judge the world.

"And he that endureth not unto the
end, the same is he that is also hewn
down and cast into the fire, from whence
they can no more return, because of the
justice of the Father.

"And this is the word which he hath
given unto the children of men. And
for this cause he fulfilleth the words
which he hath given, and he lieth not,
but fulfilleth all his words.

"And no unclean thing can enter into
his kingdom; therefore nothing entereth
into his rest save it be those who have
washed their garments in my blood,
because of their faith, and the repentance
of all their sins, and their faithfulness
unto the end.

"Now this is the commandment: Re-
pent, all ye ends of the earth, and come
unto me and be baptized in my name,
that ye may be sanctified by the recep-
tion of the Holy Ghost, that ye may
stand spotless before me at the last day."
(3 Nephi 27:14-20.)

I know of nothing that is more im-
portant or necessary at this time than
to cry repentance, even among the Lat-
ter-day Saints, and I call upon them as
well as upon those who are not members
of the Church, to heed these words of
our Redeemer. Now he has stated
definitely that no unclean thing can
enter his presence. Only those who
prove themselves faithful and have
washed their garments in his blood
through their faith and their repentance
— none others shall find the kingdom of
God.

We have inducements, enticing fea-
tures come before us through the press,
by television particularly, and in other
ways to lead our people and all other
people astray and away from keeping
the commandments of God. I want to

raise a warning voice to the members
of the Church, and especially to the
youth of the Church. Do not pay heed
to the wicked and malicious advertising
of tobacco nor of liquor. The advertis-
ing of tobacco today is one of the greatest
offenses and crimes before our Father
in heaven, and those who are guilty of
it will one day have to pay the price.
They do it now because of greed, but
we must not listen to these enticings
and to the wicked advertising of things
that are detrimental to the body and
condemned by our Father in heaven
and his Son Jesus Christ, contrary to
the gospel they have given to us.

Now, we have those who are among
us who are inclined to listen to these
pleadings and to the entertainments that
are given, all of which are intended to
lead us into forbidden fields, to partake
of things condemned by the Lord, and
which are not for those who have made
covenant with him to keep his com-
mandments.

I am going to spend a minute or two
particularly relative to this filthy tobacco
habit. I believe that some of the women
of this country are getting to be worse
than the men, and those who advertise
are seeking to influence the women — the
mothers of the children. As I ride through
the streets here of Salt Lake City in
an automobile, I sometimes see women
on nearly every street corner or between
the blocks with cigarets in their mouths
— three or four women to every man. I
fear some of them are members of the
Church. We cannot afford to turn either
to the right nor to the left from the
keeping of the commandments of the
Lord if we want to enter into his
kingdom.

Our bodies must be clean. Our
thinking must be clean. We must have
in our hearts the desire to serve the
Lord and keep his commandments; to re-

910

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

upright and virtuous life, it brings peace,
it brings joy, it brings happiness un-
speakable." (Heber J. Grant, Conference
Report, October 1911, page 22.)

At the October conference of 1921
President Grant presented a "Peace
Resolution," representing the Church as
favoring world peace, and invoking
blessings and "divine guidance of the
International Conference of the Limita-
tions of Armaments, that the cause of
Peace may be thereby enhanced, and
an amelioration of the burdens of man-
kind secured."

President George Albert Smith once
prayed: "And, O Father, in the midst
of confusion that is everywhere, and
uncertainty, bless us in America, that we

may repent of our foolishness, our light-
mindedness and our wrongdoing, realiz-
ing as we should, that all the blessings
that are worthwhile come to us only as
a result of honoring thee and keeping
thy commandments. The pathway of
righteousness is the highway of peace
and happiness."

And then finally, to end, I come back
to where I began, to the words of Presi-
dent McKay: "The Need of Peace: The
greatest need of this old world today is
peace. The turbulent storms of hate,
enmity, of distrust, and of sin are
threatening to wreck humanity. It is
time for men — true men — to dedicate
their lives to God, and to cry with the
spirit and power of the Christ, 'Peace, be

still.' Only in the complete surrender
of our inner life may we rise above the
selfish, sordid pull of nature. We should
seek first the kingdom of God and his
righteousness. What the spirit is to the
body, God is to the spirit. As the body
dies when the spirit leaves it, so the
spirit dies when we exclude God from it.
I cannot imagine peace in a world from
which God and religion are banished."
God bless us brethren and sisters, that
we may follow the admonition and
counsel of these great leaders who have
preceded us and listen intently and sin-
cerely to the words of our present leader,
that our lives may be sweet in its enjoy-
ment, I pray humbly in the name of the
Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

member our prayers, and in humility
seek the counsels that come through the
guidance of the Spirit of the Lord. That
will bring to us our salvation, and we
will never get salvation through the

violation of the covenants and com-
mandments which will bring to us
eternal life.

There is not time for me to say more
than this. These few remarks will have

to do. I have a great deal in my mind,
but I can carry those things to the stake
conferences.

The Lord bless you all, in the name
of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

IN STELLAR SPACE

BY BERTHA A. KLE1NMAN

Let missiles cleave the awesome heights of space
Where spinning orbs mark time's immensity,
Let dynasties abridge the tomes of race
And planets orbit to their destiny.

No nuclear projectile summons me
To dizzy flights beyond the sky-line rim,
The dare and challenge of trajectory
Demand a courage venturesome and grim.

Sequestered in my lowly domicile,
There is the dare I must propitiate:
To rout my citadel of greed and guile;
There is the battle royal within my gate.

When I have conquered self in time's vast pace,
I shall be candidate for Stellar Spacel

DECEMBEB 1960

911

Friday Morning Session,
October 7, 1960

I "IF

mt^ v , jus

BE
JST

Henry D. Taylor

Assistant to the Council of the Ttvelve

My dear brethren and sisters, after lis-
tening to President McKay's inspiring
message, I feel that all of us, from the
bottom of our hearts, can say, "We
thank thee, Heavenly Father, for a
prophet to guide us in these latter days."
While World War I was raging in
Europe, there were certain individuals
here at home who would sit back in
their easy armchairs, surround them-
selves with maps, and follow the prog-
ress of battle by reading the newspapers.
They were extremely critical of the gen-

erals and those who were directing the
campaigns and were very eager and vocal
in outlining the strategy they would em-
ploy if in similar positions of leadership.
These individuals were referred to as
"armchair generals."

Prior to demolition of old buildings or
the construction of new buildings, a solid
fence is built to protect passersby. It has
become a practice to bore holes in the
fence or to instal glass portholes. From
these observation points many pause and
watch with interest the demolition or
construction activities. There are those
among the viewers who would improve
the way the job is run. Some would
knock a building down immediately,
while others would have it done bit by
bit. Then there are those who would
make changes in the architectural design
of the building. Others are critical of
the manner in which the cement is
poured, the bricks are laid, and the glass
is installed. These persons are known as
"sidewalk superintendents."

Then there is another group belong-
ing to this category. While riding in a
car they are continually offering sug-
gestions to the driver as to how the car
should be operated, the speed that should
be traveled, when to turn, and the sig-
nals to be employed. These are the
"back seat drivers."

The Church becomes an object of
criticism from just such "experts." They
are dissatisfied with the manner in

which the superintendent manages the
Sunday School. They find fault with
the way the bishop conducts the affairs
of the ward. The stake president does
not please them, and they criticize his
administration. They are unhappy with
the way the tithing is disbursed. These
are the persons who find no fault with
their own actions, but seem willing and
anxious to confess another person's sins.

The Savior was chastising such groups
as these when he said: "And why be-
holdest thou the mote that is within thy
brother's eye, but considereth not the
beam that is within thine own eye? . . .
Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam
out of thine own eye; and then shalt
thou see clearly to cast out the mote out
of thy brother's eye." (Matthew 7:3-5.)

I believe that is the same thought that
the poet Burns desired to express when
he penned the lines:

"O wad some Power the giftie gie us

To see oursels as ithers see us!"

(Robert Burns, To a Louse)

I assure you that I am not against
criticism, if it is the right kind. Con-
structive criticism can be good and help-
ful. Destructive criticism can be bad
and harmful. Many years ago my mis-
sion president gave this sound advice:
"If criticism is just and given kindly,
accept it and give thanks for it. If it is
just and given unkindly, accept it. But
if it is unjust and given unkindly, pay
no heed to it."

PLEDGED TO
OBEDIENCE
AND
LOYALTY

Marion D. Hanks

of the First Council of the Seventy

My dear brothers and sisters, I am deeply
grateful this morning that I can identify
in myself at least one virtue commonly
associated with those who shall inherit
the kingdom. I love to hear the angels
sing. Thank God for wonderful Latter-
day Saint mothers, for music, for har-
mony, for service, for leadership. I
rejoice that the spirit of personal convic-

tion invoked upon us by President Lewis,
spoken of by the President of the
Church, prayed for earnestly by each
of us in our own closets, may be enjoyed
by the least of us, as well as by those
who are greatest among us. I pray for
that spirit as I express my personal wit-
ness this morning.

While the people of Israel were on
the plains of Moab, in the last part of
the fortieth year of the Exodus, shortly
before Moses was taken from them and
Joshua led them over Jordan to their
promised land, Moses delivered a series
of marvelous discourses to the people.
He reviewed the experiences and events
of the past forty years and admonished
and exhorted Israel to obey and appre-
ciate and keep faith with God, who had
preserved them as a people through their
wanderings in the wilderness from Sinai
to Jordan. He reminded them of the
magnificence of their blessings at Sinai,
repeated for them the Ten Command-
ments, and said to them:

"And it came to pass, when ye heard
the voice out of the midst of the dark-
ness, (for the mountain did burn with
fire,) that ye came near unto me, even

all the heads of your tribes, and your
elders;

"And ye said, Behold, the Lord our
God hath shewed us his glory and his
greatness, and we have heard his voice
out of the midst of the fire: we have seen
this day that God doth talk with man,
and he liveth." (Deut. 5:23-24.)

After bearing this great testimony, the
people pledged themselves to obedience
and to loyalty. They said to Moses:
"Go thou near, and hear all that the
Lord our God shall say: and speak thou
unto us all that the Lord our God shall
speak unto thee; and we will hear it,
and do it."

Moses gave moving response: "And
the Lord heard the voice of your words,
when ye spake unto me; and the Lord
said unto me I have heard the voice of
the words of this people, which they
have spoken unto thee: they have well
said all that they have spoken.

"O that there were such an heart in
them, that they would fear me, and keep
all my commandments always, that it
might be well with them, and with
their children for ever!" (Ibid., 5:27-29.)

The scripture teaches us that on thai

912

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

A critical attitude and faultfinding
with the Church, if persisted in, can
easily lead to apostasy. A good motto to
adopt and follow is, "If you can't im-
prove on silence, say nothing." It is my
deep and firm conviction that the Lord
set up his Church in these latter days
and has selected prophets to lead the
Saints. There is but one on earth at a
time called to exercise the keys of the
Holy Priesthood. He may delegate to
others the power and authority to act for
him in such capacity as he will, but he
alone holds the keys for such actions.
Today that person is President David O.
McKay.

Associated with him in the First
Presidency are two other wise and good
men. Together they constitute the "three
great Presiding High Priests." President
Joseph F. Smith made this plain in a
talk from this pulpit near the turn of
the century, when he declared: "God
has established all things in their order.
The house of God is a house of order,
and not a house of confusion. In this
house God himself is the Supreme Head,
and he must be obeyed. Christ is in the
image and likeness of his Being, his
Only Begotten Son, and he stands as
our Savior and our God. . . . Next unto
God and Christ, on the earth is placed
one unto whom the keys and authority
of the Holy Priesthood are conferred,
and to whom the right of Presidency is
given. He is God's mouthpiece to his

people in all things pertaining to the
building up of Zion, and to the spiritual
and temporal salvation of the Saints. . . .
Those who have entered into covenant
to keep the commandments of the Lord
must hearken unto the voice of him who
is placed to preside over them; and
secondarily, to those who are called to
act with him as his counselors in the
Holy Priesthood. It takes this Council
of three to constitute the presiding and
governing authority of the Priesthood in
the earth."

These brethren, together with the
Quorum of the Twelve and others of
our Church leaders, are blessed with
vision and foresight far beyond normal
powers and ability. The Lord has de-
signed that they should sit in the
"driver's seat," to use our figure of
speech, and direct the affairs of the
Church. From their vantage point they
can clearly see the road ahead, which
way to turn, how to avoid the rocks and
the chuckholes, much better than those
of us sitting in the back seat. It is our
duty, responsibility, and privilege to up-
hold and sustain them with our words,
our actions, and our prayers.

How best can we do this? By magni-
fying them in the eyes of our families,
our friends, associates, neighbors, and
even strangers, and allowing no evil
speaking of the Lord's chosen leaders.
We can substitute support for complaint,
commendation and praise for adverse

criticism. We can pray for them in
public and in private and in our family
prayers, teaching our children to pray
for them.

It is my sincere desire that each of us
will become "lifters" instead of "lean-
ers"; that we will share in the responsi-
bility of building up the kingdom of
God here upon the earth, and not shift
it all to the shoulders of our leaders.
We shall then never become "armchair
generals," "sidewalk superintendents," or
"backseat drivers," but rather "doers of
the word and not hearers only."

If we will follow the counsel and
leadership of our President and Prophet,
we shall then become eligible for all of
the blessings promised by the Lord when
he said:

"Wherefore, meaning the church, thou
shalt give heed unto all his words and
commandments which he shall give un-
to you as he receiveth them, walking in
all holiness before me;

"For his word ye shall receive, as if
from mine own mouth, in all patience
and faith.

"For by doing these things the gates
of hell shall not prevail against you; yea,
and the Lord God will disperse the
powers of darkness from before you, and
cause the heavens to shake for your
good, and his name's glory." (D & C
21:4-6.) To which I testify in the name
of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

occasion Moses "stood between the Lord"
and the people to show them "the word
of the Lord." So President McKay has
this day stood between us and the Lord
to show us His word. Our hearts have
responded. Surely many of us have
covenanted anew, as did Israel of old:
"Go thou near, and hear all that the
Lord our God shall say: and speak thou
unto us all that he shall speak unto
thee; and we will hear it, and do it."
And as we so affirm our faith and sus-
tain our prophet, is there an echo in
your heart as there is in mine of the
voice of the Lord to Israel?

"O that there were such an heart in
them, that they would fear me, and keep
all my commandments always, that it
might be well with them, and with their
children for evert"

The Lord wants more from us than
these moving expressions of conviction
and covenant. He wants more than
expressions of gratitude and testimony
and commitment. He wants us to fear
him, to love him, to keep all his com-
mandments always. He wants our
hearts.

In the 64th section of the Doctrine

and Covenants is recorded: ". . . I, the
Lord, . . . require the hearts of the
children of men." (D&C 64:22.) His
promise to those who give him their
hearts is certainly the same as it was to
ancient Israel — that we may expect his
blessings to be with us always, and with
our children.

What a marvelous promise! What a
magnificent and moving covenant God
has made with us — worth everything —
worth our love, our obedience, our faith;
worth our hearts.

What really happens when Israel gives
God its heart? What happens when men
honor their heritage and divine possi-
bilities, love him and obey his com-
mandments? There were certain humble
Nephites not many decades before the
advent of Christ who met this test, who,
in the midst of affliction and persecu-
tion, followed a course and achieved the
objective. I read from Helaman, the
third chapter, these moving words: ". . .
they did fast and pray oft, and did wax
stronger and stronger in their humility,
and firmer and firmer in the faith of
Christ, unto the filling their souls with
joy and consolation, yea, even to the

purifying and the sanctification of their
hearts, which sanctification cometh be-
cause of their yielding their hearts unto
God." (Helaman 3:35.)

King Benjamin, in concluding his
magnificent sermon, pursued the course
God has set out for his prophets. He
instructed, he enjoined, he reaffirmed,
he testified, and he promised. He said
to the people: ". . . humble yourselves
even in the depths of humility, calling
on the name of the Lord daily, standing
steadfastly in the faith of that which
is to come, . . ." and "if ye do this ye
shall always rejoice, and be filled with
the love of God, and always retain a
remission of your sins; and ye shall
grow in the knowledge of the glory of
him that created you, or in the knowl-
edge of that which is just and true.

"And ye will not have a mind to in-
jure one another, but to live peaceably,
and to render to every man according
to that which is his due." (Mosiah 4:11-
13.)

Remember God's promise to Israel?
Note this: "And ye will not suffer your
children that they go hungry, or naked;
neither will ye suffer that they transgress

DECEMBER I960

913

the laws of God, and fight and quarrel
one with another, and serve the devil,
who is the master of sin, . . .

"But ye will teach them to walk in
the ways of truth and soberness; ye will
teach them to love one another, and
to serve one another." (Ibid., 4:14-15.)

So have come the marvelous bless-
ings and promises of God. In 1833, in
Kirtland, after a great outpouring of the
Spirit at a conference held there, the
Lord gave to Joseph Smith a revelation
we now know as section 90. In it he
gave some further counsel relevant to
our theme, and a marvelous promise.
He said: "Search diligently, pray always,
and be believing, and all things shall
work together for your good, if ye walk
uprightly and remember the covenant
wherewith ye have covenanted one with
another." (D&C 90:24.)

Although one does not read in any
one verse of scripture all that he needs
to know, and although there is no simple
formula of faith that is any one verse
to the exclusion of all else, for God has
given us much of his revelation, yet in
this verse and in these others which
reflect the promises of God, there seems
to me to be the kernel of the conduct
God expects of us if we are to achieve
the magnificent promise he made to us.
"Search diligently, pray always, be be-

lieving, walk uprightly, remember your
covenants."

Now I am not one to judge my breth-
ren of the priesthood lightly. I know
to the extent my intelligence permits
of the faith in you and the devotion in
you and of the wonderful service you
give. I therefore speak from the stand-
point of appreciation when I say that
there are many among us who have not
invested enough of themselves in the
diligent search God requires of those
who know his word and therefore, living
it, achieve his marvelous promises. We
must search, seek, ask, knock.

Do you remember the word of the
Lord recorded in the first section of the
Doctrine and Covenants? He said in
this marvelous preface, looking to the
foundation principles of the gospel:
"Search these commandments, for they
are true and faithful, and the prophecies
and promises which are in them shall
all be fulfilled." (Ibid., 1:37.)

Nephi, explaining to his people why
he quoted so freely from the great
prophet Isaiah, said to them that he
quoted Isaiah to ". . . more fully per-
suade them to believe in the Lord their
Redeemer . . ." and said ". . . for I did
liken all scriptures unto us, that it
might be for our profit and learning."
Again, he told them to hear the words

of the prophet, and "liken them unto
yourselves." (1 Nephi 19:23-24.) Surely
this is one of the greatest values of
scripture — that we might learn them
and liken them unto ourselves, apply the
lessons and instructions of the revela-
tions to our own lives. How can we do
so unless we search, seek, ask, knock,
invest ourselves earnestly, diligently in
the effort to acquire and organize and
share a knowledge of the gospel of
Jesus Christ?

The Lord said we must "pray always."
His promises are wonderful. He has told
us that we may receive the Spirit by
the prayer of faith; that we must "pray
continually" that we will not be tempted
beyond what we can bear; that we must
"counsel with the Lord" in all our
doings, night and day; that we must
"not perform anything unto the Lord"
without praying to the Father in the
name of Christ. His marvelous prom-
ise is that "he will direct us for good."

We are taught that we must "be be-
lieving," for all things are possible to
him who can believe. I talked with a
group of young people about the Book
of Mormon last night and quoted to
them words of the great Goethe, who
said: "I can promise to be sincere, but
not impartial." I am not impartial to-
ward the Book of Mormon. We cannot

"GOD
WORKING
WITH MEN"

Harold B. Lee

of the Council of the Twelve

In these next few moments I trust
that I may, in the testimony which I
shall bear, catch the spirit of this con-
ference and the radiance of that which
has been reflected by our great leader,
the prophet of the Living God.

One of the gospel writers concludes
his record with this significant statement
made by Jesus: "Go ye into all the
world, and preach the gospel to every
creature . . .

"So then after the Lord had spoken
unto them, he was received up into
heaven, and sat on the right hand of
God.

"And they went forth, and preached

every where, the Lord working with
them, and confirming the word with
signs following." (Mark 16:15, 19-20.)

By now, apparently, they were begin-
ning to understand what the Lord had
said to them on another occasion: "Go
ye therefore, and teach all nations, bap-
tizing them in the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:

"Teaching them to observe all things
whatsoever I have commanded you: and,
lo, I am with you alway, even unto the
end of the world." (Matt. 28:19-20.)

He had demonstrated to some extent
some of the powers of the Risen Lord.
What they became because of this di-
vine gift which had been given to them
is described by Dr. John Lawrence Mo-
sheim in his Outlines of Ecclesiastical
History, and I shall read only a few
sentences which show evidences of a di-
vine power in the acts of the early dis-
ciples which attested to what the Master
had told them, that he would be with
them, "even to the end of the world."
Says Dr. Mosheim:

"For no sooner had the apostles re-
ceived this precious gift, this celestial
guide, than their ignorance was turned
into light, their doubts into certainty,
their fears into a firm and invincible
fortitude, and their former backwardness

into an ardent and inextinguishable zeal,
which led them to undertake their sa-
cred office with the utmost intrepidity
and alacrity of mind. This marvelous
event was attended with a variety of
gifts. . . . And indeed there were un-
doubted marks of a celestial power per-
petually attending their ministry. There
was, in their very language, an incredi-
ble energy, an amazing power of send-
ing light into the understanding, and
conviction into the heart. To this were
added the commanding influence of
stupendous miracles, the foretelling of
future events, the power of discerning
the secret thoughts and intentions of the
heart . . . and all this accompanied
with lives free from all stain, and
adorned with the constant practice of
sublime virtue. Thus were the messen-
gers of the divine Savior, the heralds of
his spiritual and immortal kingdom,
furnished for their glorious work, as the
unanimous voice of ancient history so
loudly testifies. . . ."

Now I want you to hold this last
statement of Dr. Mosheim's in your
mind:

"The event sufficiently declares this:
for without these remarkable and
extraordinary circumstances, no rational
account can be given of the rapid propa-

914

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

be impartial toward the gospei and the
Lord. If we are to get faith, we must
desire faith and seek faith. We must
start with an attitude of desiring faith.
We must "be believing."

This also the Lord said: we must "walk
uprightly." Benjamin, near the end
of his great sermon, bore his testimony
to the people, reaffirmed the need for
faith, repentance, humility, and sincere
prayer, and added: ". . . and now, if you
believe all these things see that ye do
them." (Mosiah 4:10.) As Nephi bore
his witness to the people near the end
of his ministry, he delivered a great
sermon on the first principles of the
gospel, and said: ". . . after ye have
gotten into this straight and narrow
path, ... ye must press forward with a
steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect
brightness of hope, and a love of God
and of men . . . and endure to the
end, . . ." (2 Nephi 31:19-20.) Amulek
testified of Christ, taught the first princi-
ples, admonished the people to pray, and
then said: ". . . after ye have done all
these things, if ye turn away the needy,
and the naked, and visit not the sick and
afflicted . . . behold, your prayer is
vain, and availeth you nothing, . . ."
(Alma 34:28.)

We must "walk uprightly." Within

the last few days I was in a meeting in
an eastern city talking with a group of
people about youth leadership. During
the discussion one of the professional
employees of the Department of Agri-
culture whose civil service rating is not
dependent upon who is Secretary of
Agriculture said: "We don't need to
interpret human fitness to our depart-
ment. We don't have to talk about it
a lot. We have a man who reflects it
impressively in his own life, as Secretary
of the department."

This same group heard our story of
the programs of the Church, of the prin-
ciples upon which those programs are
based, and of those who lead the pro-
grams. One said: "Yes, but your situa-
tion is not like ours. Out there you
have thousands of leaders." Another
person, the directing head of one of the
great youth programs in our land, said:
"We really can't talk about Utah in
the same context with the rest of us.
There is an influence in Utah not like
any place else on the earth." We know
what the influence is of which she
spoke. It is found not only in Utah but
in every place where faithful members
of the Church live the gospel and
exemplify its principles.

With all our protestations, sincere

and honorable, with all our expressions
of conviction and faith and testimony,
there is required of us that we develop
in us the heart that will move us to
obey all of God's commandments always,
with the promise that things will be well
with us and with our children always.

The last suggestion of the Lord in the
verse quoted from the revelation to the
Prophet was that we remember our
covenants. We have covenanted in
sacred places — at the waters of baptism,
in holy houses, as we partake of the
Sacrament — not alone with God but
with each other. Consider again the
moving charge that Alma gave the peo-
ple at the waters of Mormon, that they
were to ". . . bear one another's burdens,
. . . mourn with those that mourn; . . .
comfort those that stand in need of com-
fort, . . . and to stand as witnesses of
God at all times and in all things and
in all places . . . even unto death, . . ."
(Mosiah 18:8-9.)

God help us, we who have been
blessed with so much, to yield our hearts
to him, for while men look at the out-
ward appearance, "God looketh upon
the heart." That we may claim his
promises by obeying his commandments,
I pray, in the name of Jesus Christ.
Amen.

gation of the gospel throughout the
world." (Dr. John Lawrence Mosheim,
Outlines of Ecclesiastical History, Vol.
1, pp. 61, 67.)

The process by which leaders become
spiritual as those disciples were is set
forth in a very simple admonition of
the Master. The Savior called fisher-
men, and he called tax-collectors and
others in various occupations to consti-
tute his chosen twelve. He gave to each
of them the same simple promise:

"Follow me, and I will make you
fishers of men," or as another writer
puts it, "I will make you to become
fishers of men." (Matt. 4:19; Mark 1:17.)

To "come after him" is but another
way of saying, "Keep my command-
ments," for thus he had explained it
when he said to the Nephites: "There-
fore, what manner of men ought ye to
be?" And then he answered his own
question, "Verily I say unto you, even
as I am." (3 Nephi, 27:27.)

To become "fishers of men" is just
another way of saying "become leaders
of men." So in today's language we
would say to those who are so to teach:
"If you will keep my commandments,
I will make you leaders among men."

Those who are outsiders and enemies
of the Church observed these unusual

gifts given to these early disciples. You
remember the Jews marveled at the
Master's demonstration of his power,
and they asked: "How knoweth this man
letters, having never learned?" To
which the Master humbly replied, "My
doctrine is not mine, but his that sent
me." (John 7:15-16.)

And to Peter, the Master replied after
Peter had borne his testimony as to the
divinity of the Master, as President Mc-
Kay has quoted, "Flesh and blood hath
not revealed it unto thee, but my Father
which is in heaven." When Peter and
John had performed marvelous deeds,
those who were around about marveled
because they "perceived that they were
unlearned and ignorant men, . . ." (Acts
4:13.)

There seems to have been a constant
vigil lest those who enjoyed these special
God-given gifts would arrogate to them-
selves personal superior talents, when in
reality these spiritual endowments were
but outward evidences of divine gifts
given among men who are called to
serve in high places in the kingdom of
God.

Peter chided those, you remember, af-
ter he had performed the healing upon
the man who was lame from his birth,
when he said:

"Ye. men of Israel, why marvel ye at
this? or why look ye so earnestly on us,
as though by our own power or holiness
we had ma^e this man to walk?

"The God of Abraham, and of Isaac,
and of Jacob, the God of our fathers,
hath glorified his Son Jesus: whom ye
delivered up. . . .

"And his name through faith in his
name hath made this man strong, whom
ye see and know: yea, the faith which
is by him hath given him this perfect
soundness in the presence of you all."
(Ibid., 3:12-13, 16.)

Recall again Peter's rebuke to Simon,
the sorcerer, who wanted to buy the
gifts of the Holy Ghost which he saw
demonstrated through Peter:

"But Peter said unto him, Thy money
perish with thee, because thou hast
thought that the gift of God may be
purchased with money.

"Thou hast neither part nor lot in
this matter: for thy heart is not right
in the sight of God.

"Repent therefore of this thy wicked-
ness, and pray God, if perhaps the
thought of thine heart may be forgiven
thee." (Ibid., 8:20-22.)

John was taught in plainness how he
must learn to distinguish between the
person who demonstrates spiritual gifts

DECEMBER 1960

915

and the giver of those heavenly gifts,
even God. When a messenger came to
him he fell down at the feet of this
messenger as though to worship him,
and the messenger said:

"See thou do it not: I am thy fellow-
servant, and of thy brethren that have
a testimony of Jesus: worship God: for
the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of
prophecy." (Rev. 19:10.)

And Moses learned that same lesson
after he had received the wonderful
visitation from the Lord who had ap-
peared in his glory as contrasted with
the visit from and the appearance of
Satan. In humility he said thoughtfully,
as he pondered this great experience:
"Now for this cause I know that man
is nothing, which thing I never had
supposed." (Moses 1:10.)

In our day, we have been told some
similar things about the power of the
Lord among his peoples. In the very
first revelation, or the preface to the
revelations, the Lord said: "For I am no
respecter of persons, and will that all
men shall know that the day speedily
cometh; the hour is not yet, but is nigh
at hand, when peace shall be taken from
the earth, and the devil shall have
power over his own dominion.

"And also the Lord shall have power
over his saints, and shall reign in their

midst, and shall come down in judg-
ment upon Idumea, or the world." (D &
C 1:35-36.)

One of the ways by which "he comes
down among his people" is clearly
explained in the revelation in which
he defines certain gifts of the Spirit. He
enumerates some of the gifts of the
Spirit which men might enjoy: knowl-
edge, and faith, and discernment, and
the gift of tongues, and the testimony
of knowledge that Jesus is the Son of
God, and then he says this:

". . . unto such as God shall appoint
and ordain to watch over the church,
... are to have it given unto them to
discern all those gifts. . . ." (Ibid,, 46:
27.)

Previously he had said: ". . . given
for the benefit of those who love me
and keep all my commandments."
(Ibid., 9.)

In our day he sounded a warning just
as these other leaders have sounded a
warning, when he said to those to whom
these gifts are committed:

"And in nothing doth man offend
God, or against none is his wrath kin-
dled, save those who confess not his
hand in all things, and obey not his
commandments." (Ibid., 59:21.)

Some of the older brethren who re-
member the days of President Joseph F.

Smith have told me that frequently
when President Smith was introduced
as the "head of the Church," he was
always quick to reply, "Oh, no. I'm but
the President of the Church. Jesus
Christ is its head."

That is something for us to remem-
ber. When we receive the adulation of
faithful people, we must never forget
that such commendations come, not be-
cause of our person, but because of the
positions we hold. In conference meet-
ings with the mission presidents we
heard this repeated with variation and,
as applied to the Church, it might be
said thus: "There is no end to the
amount of good we can do in this
Church if we are not concerned about
who gets the credit for it."

It was possibly something like this
which the Master had in mind when he
warned:

"Woe unto you, when all men shall
speak well of you! for so did their
fathers to the false prophets." (Luke
6:26.) In a revelation today, we have
had called to our attention the human
tendencies which are in most men: "...
but when we undertake to cover our
sins, or to gratify our pride, our vain
ambition, or to exercise control or do-
minion or compulsion upon the souls
of the children of men, in any degree

Friday Afternoon Session,
October 7, 1960

"JUDGE

NOT"

Milton R. Hunter

of the First Council of the Seventy

In his masterful discourse of the Ser-
mon on the Mount, Jesus gave a vital
commandment which has been ignored
almost universally by the human fam-
ily. In many cases where it has not
been ignored, it has been broken many
times by most people.

I believe that we all want to do what
is right — live near to the Lord — and so
this afternoon I would like to say a few
words about the observance of this com-
mandment.

"Judge not," Jesus commanded, "that
ye be not judged." And then he gave
this warning:

"For with what judgment ye judge,
ye shall be judged: and with what
measure ye mete, it shall be measured
to you again." (Matthew 7:1-2.)

Throughout my life in mingling with
many people of various religious de-
nominations I have observed that as a
rule it seems as if human beings like to
gossip. We like to hear unsavory things
about our neighbors and talk about each
other. It seems that ofttimes we get a
certain degree of satisfaction or even
joy out of saying bad things about other
people. We thoughtlessly and some-
times maliciously judge each other. We
censure our associates sometimes unjust-
ly, many times unkindly; and most of
the time we speak without having the
evidence to back up what we are say-
ing. We seem to forget that James, the
brother of the Lord, warned that the
unbridled tongue is "full of deadly poi-
son." (James 3:8.)

I know that even sometimes people
who are faithful in the Church pass
judgment and condemnation on those
with whom they associate without know-
ing the facts. Such is displeasing to
God.

I know that many people's hearts have
been broken and tears have been shed
because of the unkind and perhaps un-

true things that have been said about
them and because of unjust judgments
that we give of each other.

As I look into the faces of the mem-
bers of this congregation, my conscience
certainly tells me that I err at times.
Sometimes I gossip and judge others, and
when I do it I act unrighteously before
the Lord. My heart tells me I would
like to repent, I would like to overcome
my weakness of gossiping and saying bad
things about other people. I am sure
that you feel the same as I do.

But one might say: "The man or the
woman from whom I obtained this in-
formation is an honest man or woman
and would not lie."

Certainly honest and honorable peo-
ple would not lie, but we should re-
member that they have to get their
information through human senses and
that human senses are not always a
hundred percent reliable; for example,
if an honest man were standing on a
corner and another one on the opposite
corner and two cars crashed in the
street, the testimonies of these two men
might vary, and rightly so. They saw
the accident at different angles, and
perhaps neither of them saw exactly
what happened.

Recently one of the General Authori-

916

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

of unrighteousness, behold, the heavens
withdraw themselves; the Spirit of the
Lord is grieved; and when it is with-
drawn, Amen to the priesthood or the
authority of that man. . . .

"We have learned by sad experience
that it is the nature and disposition of
almost all men, as soon as they get a
little authority, as they suppose, they
will immediately begin to exercise un-
righteous dominion." (D&C 121:37, 39.)

And he has told us two reasons why
men fail to receive what they might
otherwise have obtained:

"Because their hearts are set so much
upon the things of this world, and as-
pire to the honors of men, . . ." (Verse
35.)

I remember at a stake conference some
years ago a young man was called to
a high position. When we had asked
him to express himself, expecting a hum-
ble testimony in his acceptance, he stood
up and in a rather flamboyant, boastful
way gave a dramatic performance. At
the close of the service as we walked
home, one of the high council whis-
pered to me and said, calling him by
name: "When he stood up there in the
pulpit this morning, he was all alone."

That is what the young missionary
meant who said he had baptized a num-
ber of people but all of them had apos-

tatized, so he said, "I must have con-
verted them all by myself."

I remember one of my brethren, who
had invited me to join him in an ad-
ministration to a sick person, who said
very humbly to this individual, "Now,
sister, when you receive the blessing of
this administration, do not mention the
names of those through whom the bless-
ings were given."

Today we are witnessing a great, mar-
velous demonstration of the power of
conversion. Perhaps we are going to see
the most rapid propagation of the gospel
in the world than we have seen in any
previous dispensation. We must make
certain that we do not offend God by our
failure to confess his hand in all things.
We must not forget that it is not by the
will of men, but is evidence, as in the
days of the disciples of old, that God
is working with men. It is the only
explanation we can give.

The suggested missionary procedures
we have provide excellent guides to
improved study and presentation of the
gospel lessons by missionaries. Sales-
manship methods of themselves alone
as applied to the teaching of the gospel
will convince the mind but do not con-
vert the heart. Conversion is a spiritual
process. Paul taught, ". . . faith com-
eth by hearing, and hearing by the

word of God. ... How then shall
they call on him in whom they have
not believed? and how shall they be-
lieve in him of whom they have not
heard? and how shall they hear with-
out a preacher? and how shall they
preach, except they be sent?" (Romans
10:17, 14-15.)

And the Apostle Paul also said:

"I have planted, Apollos watered; but
God gave the increase," and then he
added in language that sounded like
that statement of Moses after God had
conversed with him: "So then neither
is he that planteth any thing, neither he
that watereth; but God that giveth the
increase." (I Cor. 3:6-7.)

Modern servants of God may go forth
if and when they are constantly aware
of their own nothingness and place their
dependence solely upon the power of
Almighty God; for as the Apostle Paul
wrote to the Romans: "If God be for
us, who can be against us?" (Rom. 8:
31.)

My prayer is that we may do our part
that we shall qualify to ever have him
for us, and with us, and that we may
constantly lose ourselves in unselfish
devotion to his cause and thus find ever-
lasting life, which I pray humbly, in
the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Amen.

ties said that he was interested at stake
conferences to hear members of stake
presidencies in the Sunday conference
sessions tell some of the things that he
had talked about the night before. And
then the General Authority said, "Oft-
times I cannot recognize that I had
talked on the subjects nor said the things
that I was reported to have said."

Now certainly the General Authority
was not accusing stake presidencies of
being dishonest. I think he did not
have that in mind at all, but this story
illustrates the inadequacy of human
senses.

Sometimes we sit in a congregation
like this one and listen to somebody
speak. While he talks we think many
of our own ideas as we hear many of
the things he is saying. As time passes
we might confuse some of our own
thoughts with some of the things the
speaker said. Because of the inadequacy
of human senses, Jesus Christ said, "in
the mouth of two or three witnesses
every word may be established."
(Matt. 18:16.)

The Savior and the holy prophets have
told us how to judge when it needs be
that we judge, because ofttimes we must
judge. In fact, many of you in this tab-
ernacle— stake presidencies, high coun-

selors, and bishoprics — are called upon
to be judges. It is your ecclesiastical
responsibility to judge. But let me give
the warning that with the same judg-
ment that you judge, you shall be judged.

The Lord and the Prophet Joseph
Smith understood human nature, know-
ing that we may be tempted to judge
unjustly, and so the following is found
in the Doctrine and Covenants:

And then this beautiful admonition
was given us:

"No power or influence can or ought
to be maintained by virtue of the priest-
hood only by persuasion, by long-suffer-
ing, by gentleness and meekness, and by
love unfeigned;

"By kindness, and pure knowledge,
which shall greatly enlarge the soul
without hypocrisy, and without guile — "
(D&C 121:39, 41-42.)

As I have traveled throughout the
Church and have observed those who
have been called and set apart to be
judges, it is my testimony that they have
been guided in most cases by the pure

love of Jesus Christ, by charity, and so
they have rendered righteous judgment.

As I have suggested, the Savior and
the prophets have told us how to treat
each other. The Master gave us the
vital law known as the second great
commandment: "Thou shalt love thy
neighbour as thyself." (Mark 12:31.)

If all of us would love our neighbors —
would love all the people with whom
we associate — as much as we love our-
selves, we would do no unkind things
to them. We would not say any harsh
or unkind words to them. We would
not repeat any bad gossip about them.
But on the other hand, we would show
forth love and compassion at all times.
We would rejoice in their successes, and
we would weep with them in their
sorrows. Under those conditions, a
glorious spirit of brotherhood, love, and
compassion would prevail.

The Savior also gave us the famous
Golden Rule: ". . . whatsoever ye would
that men should do to you, do ye even
so to thern." (Matt. 7:12.)

Every time we hear something about
somebody else, if we would stop and
think before we repeated what we heard
and take as our measuring rod the fol-
lowing: "Would I like to have somebody
say that thing about me? Is it just? Is

DECEMBER i960

917

it fair? Would it make the person in-
volved happier if I should repeat it?
Would it make him progress? Would it
add to the beauty and the joy of life?"
And if it will not meet these measure-
ments, then our judgment would not be
righteous if we should repeat what we
heard. It is best under these conditions
that we keep quiet.

Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles, wrote
a beautiful poem on faith, hope, and
charity to the Corinthian Saints. He
said:

"Though I speak with the tongues
of men and of angels, and have not
charity, I am become as sounding brass
or a tinkling cymbal.

"And though I have the gift of
prophecy, and understand all mysteries,
and all knowledge; and though I have

all faith, so that I could remove moun-
tains, and have not charity, I am
nothing. . . ."

And then Paul ended his famous poem
by saying:

"And now abideth faith, hope, charity,
these three; but the greatest of these is
charity." (1 Cor. 13:1-2, 13.)

Charity is the greatest of all Christian
virtues. It is, as the prophets have said,
the pure love of Jesus Christ. It en-
compasses all the virtues that I have
mentioned and even many, many other
Christian virtues. In all of our deal-
ings with each other, our hearts should
be filled with charity toward all men.
We should show forth an abundance
of charity toward all the people with
whom we associate.

Our Lord Jesus Christ not only taught

that we should love our friends, but
he commanded us to love our enemies.
We should pray for them who despite-
fully use us. He not only taught these
things, but he lived as he taught, there-
by marking the path for us to follow.

While the Master was hanging on the
cross, suffering the most excruciating
pain that anybody could endure, and
while he was listening to the jeers of
the rabble down at the foot of the cross,
his heart was filled with compassion
toward them. With a fulness of char-
ity and with an abundance of love in
his heart for those who had caused him
to be crucified, he cast his eyes toward
heaven and prayed,

"Father, forgive them; for they know
not what they do." (Luke 23:34.)

It is my opinion that this is the great-

THE CHURCH
IS A STAGE,
ITS MEMBERS
PLAYERS

William J. Critchlow, Jr.
Assistant to the Council of the Twelve

President McKay, my brothers and
sisters:

Where could you find sweeter voices
than these voices from Ogden and
Northern Utah which have sung for us
this day? I have heard them before, I
hope to hear them again. I am proud
of them.

"All the world's a stage,

And all the men and women merely

players:
They have their exits and their en-
trances;
And one man in his time plays many
parts."

— Shakespeare,
As You Like It, Act II,
Scene 7, lines 139-142.

Through the years thousands of our
young men and women and many old-
sters, too, have been called to play he-
roic roles in the great Drama of Life.
I have enjoyed these past two years the
privilege of setting apart many of them,
— missionaries of the Church — sending
them forth to perform on the stage of
life with a blessing.

The Drama of Life has many acts.
Few of them, however, are as thrilling

as the act entitled "A Mission." Let me
sketch ily review for you a few scenes
in an act which I witnessed, just to
show how exciting this "Mission Act"
can really be.

The opening scene was called "Miles
Zero."

In the missionary's first letter to his
folks he wrote:

"Dear Dad: I'm up at Miles Zero on
the Alaskan highway in Dawson Creek
where it is costing me one hundred dol-
lars a week for board and room. . . ."

His dad replied immediately, "Dear
Son: Get off the Alaskan highway! Park
Avenue, New York, should be cheaper.
Miles Zero is too rich for my blood."

The dad's letter and another letter
from the son crossed in the mail. The
son's letter began:

"Dear Dad: The Lord has blessed me
already. A man committed suicide in his
room. It was so ghastly that no one
would rent it. I offered the landlord
forty dollars a month. He took me up—
so I moved in with my companion who
is sharing the forty dollars. All my
problems are solved."

Months passed.

Then, in one of his regular letters, the
son said, "I have twenty-two prospects
about ready to join up, but no place to
baptize them. Peace River will be frozen
over till June, and before then I shall
be due for a transfer. Wish I could use
a bathtub. They have some large tin
ones up here. . . ."

Weeks passed.

In another letter the son wrote:
"Lucky me. The Lord has blessed me
again. Two of my choice prospects, the
banker and the head of the Masonic
Lodge, who is also the president of the
Power Board went six hundred miles
down to Edmonton, and I baptized them.
That's two down, only twenty more to

go. My president is pleased. He is
transferring me to Bella Coula, wher-
ever that is. Up here, there are two
kinds of water — liquid and frozen, also
two kinds of prospects — hot and cold.
I'm terribly afraid that some of my
twenty remaining prospects will 'freeze
up' before liquid water and a baptismal
font become available. I shall regret
losing them, but I'll pick twenty up in
Bella Coula. Wish me luck."

Five years after the curtain fell on this
son's "Mission Act," I was sent to a con-
ference in Calgary, Canada, and in one
of the sessions of the conference I lis-
tened to the stake president praise, as
he released, his stake mission president
who had baptized twenty converts "right
here in Calgary." He called on him to
speak. I copied these words from a tape
of his talk.

"Seven years ago one Sunday in a
converted hut at Miles Zero on the
Alaskan highway I met a young man
who was to be instrumental in changing
the course of my life. He was big, six
feet. He had a big grin and hands that
were always moving. You could tell he
had the spirit of the gospel. I had met
many men before, but never had I met
a man who could teach the gospel the
way this man did. He would both fast
and pray, and I remember that one time
he fasted three days and nights, going
without food and water and praying on
behalf of the people he was teaching.
He taught the gospel with an inspira-
tion that only one who had the guid-
ance of his Father in heaven could
bring. He baptized me. I have a great
love for that young man. Elder Critch-
low, take back to your son a confirma-
tion of the love we have for him. In
a way to pay the debt tell him that
many here within the sound of my
voice, whom I have had the privilege

918

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

est example in history of pure love, of
undefiled charity, of actually showing a
fulness of compassion for one's enemies.

Micah, one of the great Old Testament
prophets, pointed out the way for us to
live. He said,

"He hath shewed thee, O man, what
is good; and what doth the Lord re-
quire of thee, but to do justly, and to
love mercy, and walk humbly with thy
God." (Micah 6:8.)

In humility I ask our Father in heaven
to pour out his Spirit upon the Latter-
day Saints. May he bless you and me
abundantly that we will be filled with
the spirit of charity and love for each
other. May we overcome our evil habit
of gossiping, of saying unkind and un-
savory things about each other.

On the other hand, may we say noth-
ing but that which is kind and generous
about all people. May our lives be
filled with patience, brotherly kindness,
and compassion toward each other at all
times and under all circumstances.
Under those conditions we would right-
fully be children of God with his love in
our hearts. Then our lives would be
actuated by godliness.

Permit me to suggest that we hus-
bands cease criticizing our wives, be-
cause if we criticize our wives it weakens
our love for them. Also, it tends to kill
their love and respect for us.

I would give the following admoni-
tion to wives: Respect your husbands.
Do not criticize your husbands. If you
indulge in such practices it results in

bringing about disunity, kills your
spirituality, and tends to break up your
homes. Perhaps the final result may
be the loss of your eternal salvation.

Let each of us walk in the path con-
tinuously that Jesus marked out, having
our hearts filled with charity and love
toward our fellow men. May we keep
all of God's commandments, walking by
every word that proceedeth forth from
his mouth. If we will do these things,
we shall have an abundance of joy in
this life and eternal life in the presence
of our Savior after we have completed
our( missions here upon this earth.

May our Heavenly Father bless us
that we shall always live as he desires
that we should live, I humbly pray, in
Jesus' name. Amen.

of teaching have come into the kingdom
of God — through your son."

Those words "through your son"
were ringing pleasantly in my ears —
still I heard the president who leaned
toward me to whisper: "He (the mission
president) baptized twenty people here
in Calgary."

Suddenly, my memory was flooded
with a maze of words — words which my
son had written years before. Slowly,
they assembled into fragments of broken
sentences: "That's two down — twenty
more to go — I'm afraid my twenty pros-
pects will freeze up before liquid water
is available. ... I regret losing them. . . .
I'll pick them up in Bella Coula — Wish
me luck."

Well, he didn't pick them up in Bella
Coula.

They were picked up in Calgary by
one of the "two down" who picked up
the "twenty more to go" — "through
your son."

Families that have never had a mis-
sionary in the field have missed one of
the grandest blessings that could come
into their homes. Ask the mother who
impatiently awaits her missionary son's
letters, who gleefully reads lines in them
over the back fence to neighbors and
over the phone to relatives and friends.

Ask the proud father, the brother, or
the sister about the sweet feeling they
experience when they kneel together
each day in family prayers to ask a bless-
ing for their missionary. Before Bobby
left for his mission the family skipped
its prayers occasionally, but while he
was in the field — so far, far away from
home, they skipped fewer prayers be-
cause Bobby might need the protection
and the help of a loving Heavenly
Father. Never was the family knit more
closely together.

Recently I told a stake president he

needed six thousand stake missionaries.
"Be reasonable," he said, "I've only six
thousand members in my stake."

"Right, exactly right," I replied, "and
every one of those members is a mis-
sionary."

Every member of our Church is a
missionary. Without the formality of a
setting-apart we should be so set-apart
from the ways of the world that we can
teach the gospel, which is our Father's
way of life, by the very lives we live.
Without the oral word of mouth preach-
ing, the example of our living will al-
ways be effective teaching. A sermon
seen is better than a sermon heard.

Example has more followers than rea-
son and is more forcible than precept.

Yes, the world's a stage;

So is the Church a stage;

And all its members merely players. . .

They have their exits and their en-
trances;

And each member in his time is ex-
pected to choose and play a noble part.

Come up here with me on this stage
of life and, over the glare of the foot-
lights in this World Theater let's take
a peek at the audience watching us play
our parts in the great Drama of Life.

Down there in the parquet whom do
you see? Over the glare of the foot-
lights I quite distinctly see my wife, my
children, my neighbors, my friends
across the town and across the country,
my vocational associates, my associates
in the Church Offices. All who know
me, be it ever so well or ever so slight,
seem to be in this World Theater. And
they're watching, oh, so critically. Yet
if I play my role well — the role of a
Latter-day Saint — I'm sure there will be
some applause. But if I slip out of
character — even for a moment or so —
some of them, like patrons of any thea-
ter, at times, might sneer, perhaps hiss.

These translate into one of the ugliest
words in the English dictionary — "hypo-
crite."

May our merciful Heavenly Father
help me, help you to play our chosen
roles so well that we may deserve the
plaudits and the praise, at least the re-
spect of those who watch.

Now look up to the balcony . . . the
glare of the footlights, whom do you
see there? On the very first row I see
my mother. My father is beside her, my
brother beside him. Behind them, I be-
lieve, my grandparents. One man among
them with sideburns and a lock of
curly brown hair looks like a picture
I've seen of Captain James Brown who
led the sick detachment of the Mormon
Battalion into Salt Lake Valley. He's my
great-grandfather. These obviously are
the dead. I can almost hear them say:

'We are the dead,

Short years ago we lived, felt dawn,

saw Sunshine glow. . . .
To you from failing hand the torch

we throw
Be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die,
We shall not sleep."

— adapted — "In Flanders Fields" McCrea.
I don't really believe, of course, that my
father and mother and my grandparents
are peeking through the veil, observing
every scene in which I act, but some-
times I wonder. Just in case, I had bet-
ter act, I ought to act, yes, I want to
act so that they with a feeling of pride
will smile and applaud my scenes.

I love my parents and my grand-
parents. They are not dead. They live.
Sometimes I think I almost hear, or
rather feel, their prayers for me! Surely
they must be praying and pulling for
me, otherwise I would not have been so
blessed. Again, I ask a merciful Father
in heaven to help me and to help you

DECEMBER 1960

919

to play our scenes so well that we may
fittingly deserve applause from the bal-
cony of the dead.

Look again, this time to the gallery.
Over the glow of the footlights I see
faces very indistinctly. I recognize none
of them. These, something tells me,
are the spirits yet to come and be em-

bodied on this eartb; they who must
come to take our places. I wonder if
they do not watch with interest the
Drama of Earth Life, and if they are not
earnestly praying that we will play our
roles well, for they must come to dwell
in the environment we are creating for
them. Once upon a time our Heavenly

Father's children on this earth became
so wicked that he washed them and
their wickedness off the stage with a
great flood so that these spirits might
inherit a decent environment. This
gallery of spirits will certainly applaud
if we play our parts well.
High up above the stage in this World

THIS

MARVELOUS

WORK

Joseph L. Wirthlin
Presiding Bishop

President McKay, my brothers and
sisters, to be here upon this occasion is
most inspirational to me as I am sure
it is to you. As I came into this remark-
able building, the events that took place
at the time of Brigham Young and those
who were with him came to my mind.

The marvelous revelation that was
given to the Prophet Joseph on Novem-
ber 1, 1831, is one that all of us can
give consideration to, particularly at this
time when the Lord said to the Prophet
Joseph:

"And the voice of warning shall be
unto all people, by the mouths of my
disciples, whom I have chosen in these
last days.

"And they shall go forth and none
shall stay them, for I the Lord have
commanded them." (D&C 1:4-5.)

This revelation calls the disciples of
the Lord Jesus Christ, and particularly
the apostles in this day as well as in the
time of the Prophet Joseph, to go into
the world and preach the gospel to every
nation, kindred, tongue, and people.
Under their direction missionary work
is being done in the world today, and I
am sure that all enjoy divine guidance
as they meet this great assignment.

This morning President McKay told
us of the leadership of certain individuals
in the world who, if they had their way,
would destroy our knowledge that God
lives and that Jesus Christ is his Son.
I am sure they will never be successful.
The Lord in his way will handle such

individuals.

Of the great men who have gone in
the past, I think particularly of Brigham
Young and the twelve who were called
to preach the gospel to the people in
Great Britain. They were poor men.
They started the long trip to England
without the funds to pay their way.
While they did not have enough of this
world's goods, they knew that Joseph
Smith was a prophet of God, and they
were willing to bear testimony to the
world that God the Father and his Son
Jesus Christ appeared to the Prophet
Joseph. With that testimony in their
souls, they accepted that great assign-
ment.

At the time Brigham Young left, he
was a very sick man. He said, "I could
not walk thirty rods to the river." His
family, too, was ill. His wife had just
given birth to another babe, and she
was in poor health. However, Brigham
Young and his companions started on
their journey. When they reached
New York, they were helped by the
Saints who raised sufficient funds where-
by they could pay the amount of
eighteen dollars to cross the Atlantic
Ocean. The Saints also gave them food
to use while on the ship. They landed
in England on April 6, 1840, taking about
a month to arrive there. It was just ten
years after the Church had been organ-
ized. The Lord had sent these men to
England for the purpose of again mak-
ing it possible for the English people to
hear the gospel and organize the Church
of the Lord Jesus Christ. They arrived
as poor men. They had no money. The
sisters made clothing for Brigham Young
as his was worn out. Great conferences
were held. They labored in and around
Manchester.

Wilford Woodruff did a marvelous
work. He was preaching in the little
town of Handley, and there he found
that the people were very much inter-
ested in what he Was telling them in
bearing testimony that God lives and
that Jesus Christ is his Son. He had
direction from on high, indicating that
he should travel to the south. He was
not quite sure as to the instructions he
had received. So, again he made it a
matter of prayer. The Lord made it
very clear to him that he should travel
to the south. On arriving at the ap-

pointed place, he came in contact with
some people who were very friendly to
him and to the word of the Lord that
he was preaching. It was an organiza-
tion called the United Brethren. I think
we are all familiar with the history of
that wonderful group of people. Six
hundred of them had left other churches
and organized a church of their own
because they were dissatisfied. They
heard the gospel as it was given to them
by an apostle, Brother Woodruff. They
all accepted it with the exception of one
member. Among them were forty
preachers who belonged to this organ-
ization, and they, too, joined the Church,
all evidence that there were many peo-
ple in Great Britain who were anxious
to hear and accept the gospel of the
Lord Jesus Christ as it was given to
them by one of the Lord's apostles. I
am sure that today there are thousands
of people in that great country who want
to hear the gospel, accept it, and enjoy
all of its blessings.

The brethren returned in 1841, after
they had done a great missionary work
in Great Britain. Brigham Young made
the statement that during the period
they were there they baptized between
seven thousand and eight thousand peo-
ple, and that, in and of itself, was a great
achievement.

As I said in the beginning, these were
poor men. The Church was poor. It
had no funds, but yet these men had
great responsibilities. The people in
Great Britain needed to receive the Book
of Mormon. They printed five thousand
copies of the Book of Mormon, three
thousand hymnbooks, two thousand and
five hundred volumes of the Millennial
Star, and fifty thousand tracts, and all
of these were paid for before Brigham
Young returned home.

Under the direction of another great
apostle, Brother Harold B. Lee, a stake
was recently organized in Manchester.
The English people have the same op-
portunity and privilege now of attending
these fine stake conferences as we do here
in Zion.

With Brother Hugh B. Brown, Sister
Wirthlin and I had the privilege of at-
tending the Manchester Stake confer-
ence. The spirit and attitude of the
people were most inspiring and encour-
aging. I am sure in the days to come

920

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

Theater is a box. Look up. The glare
of the overhead floodlights obscures its
occupant. This box is reserved for the
Author of the play — the Drama of Life.
He not only is the Author, he is also the
Critic and the Judge. How glorious
could be that day if in its morning — ■
the morning after the curtain falls — his

press would announce: "Well done,
thou good and faithful servant."

Yes, the world's a stage, so is the
Church a stage, and you and I are
merely players. We've chosen noble
roles in the Drama of Life. Let's play
them well.

We can preach a better sermon with

our lives than with our lips. We can do
more good by being good than by
preaching good. Let us so act that our
principle of action shall become a law,
not only for the Church, but also for
the whole world. Eventually it will be.
May that time be soon, I humbly pray
in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

there will be other stakes organized.
Great Britain is growing in the Church.
Many thousands of people are anxious
to hear the gospel of the Lord Jesus
Christ. To me that is so impressive
because I recall the time when we, as
missionaries laboring in Germany, had
to leave Germany during World War I
and make our way to London. I recall
some individuals who did everything
they could to prevent us from holding a
street meeting. In fact, the president of
the conference said, "I believe we had
better go back to the mission home,"
which we did. The crowd followed us
right to the door of the mission home
and made the statement, "If we had
rocks, we would throw them." That was
the spirit in Great Britain forty-six years
ago. While there, we met another apos-
tle, Hyrum M. Smith. He assigned each
missionary to another field of labor.
The German submarines were sinking
every English ship possible. Finally, we
heard that the Lusitania was going to
sail. We went to President Smith and
said, "Now, President, we understand the
Lusitania is going to sail," and he said,
"You can go. Not only that, you will
arrive home safely." He made that
statement very definite to us. We were
not worried about traveling on the
Lusitania, so we made our way back to
New York, and six months later, the
Lusitania was sunk by a German sub-
marine. President Hyrum M. Smith
was one who had the inspiration and
divine guidance.

During the past summer, Bishop
Buehner, Sister Buehner, Sister Wirth-
lin, and I had the privilege of visiting in
Europe. Elder Alvin R. Dyer is now
president of the European Mission and
is doing a great and marvelous work
through divine guidance and inspiration
with very little government interfer-
ence. When I was in Germany, we did
not have that privilege. I labored in
Frankfurt for a short time when the
police forced me to leave. I then went
into Stuttgart and the police arrested
me three times, and the third time I
had to leave. The same thing happened
in Karlsruhe. Then, the war came and,
of course, we all left the mission.

At the present time in Great Britain,
Germany, and all parts of Western Eu-
rope, our missionaries now have the

opportunity of teaching and preaching
the gospel without government inter-
ference. As I see what is being accom-
plished, I have been very much interested
in knowing the number of converts we
have in Great Britain. From January 1,
1960 to August 31, 1960, there have been
baptized in the British Mission and
North British Mission 2,387 Saints— a
wonderful number, and I am sure be-
fore the end of the year they will bap-
tize many more. Then, I noticed that in
the Danish Mission for that period, they
have baptized 202. In the Finnish Mis-
sion for that same period of time 160,
in the Netherlands Mission 303, and
in the French Mission for that same
period almost 600! I recall when I was
in the German Mission, we thought that
to spend any time in teaching and
preaching the gospel to the French peo-
ple was just a waste of time, but the
French people have a desire to hear the
gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. We
have wonderful missionaries there. As
a result six hundred have accepted the
gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ in the
last eight months, and the president of
that mission indicated that he antici-
pated before the end of this year there
would be another six hundred, or ap-
proximately twelve hundred Saints —
converts for 1960. I noticed particularly
in the North German Mission there were
286 converts, the South German Mis-
sion 210, and the West German Mission
310, or a total of 806 German people
baptized. That itself is marvelous. In
the Swedish Mission, they baptized 129.

In the Swiss-Austrian Mission, they
have baptized 594, 300 of whom are
youth. The young people in these for-
eign countries are anxious to hear the
gospel. I have talked to the mission-
aries on many occasions, particularly in
Austria. I asked them this question,
"Now, just what do these people say to
you about the Prophet Joseph." "Well,"
they say, "these people want to know
who Joseph Smith was and what is the
Book of Mormon." To them, there is
a great interest in the fact that an
American prophet made it possible for
them to read the Book of Mormon.

I recall again the time when we were
endeavoring to preach the gospel in
Germany that we dared not go into
Austria. We only had fifteen members

in the great city of Vienna, but when
we visited there some seven weeks ago,
we had 350 members, and since that
time Austria has become a mission of
its own, and they will baptize literally
thousands of these wonderful people.
So, we come to the conclusion, brethren
and sisters, the gospel of the Lord Jesus
Christ is being made available to many
nations, but when we are going to have
the opportunity of preaching the gospel
to the people in Russia or the people in
India or the people in China, I do not
know. But, as the President said this
morning, sooner or later all these na-
tions will hear the gospel of the Lord
Jesus Christ just exactly as they have
heard it in Great Britain and as they
have heard it in the European missions.
So, in the final analysis, that is a won-
derful revelation given to us by the
Lord through the Prophet Joseph when
he said: "And the voice of warning
shall be unto all people, by the mouths
of my disciples, whom I have chosen
in these last days." (Ibid., 1:4.)

Today, there is difficulty in the world
with war and the possibilities of war,
but in the last days, the Lord has made
it very clear that his disciples are to
preach the gospel to all people, and then
he said, "And they shall go forth and
none shall stay them. . . ." (Ibid., 1:5.)
Regardless of what nation they go into
as time goes on as this wonderful
revelation says, ". . . and none shall stay
them . . . ," they are going to have the
right, and they are going to have the
opportunity and the privilege to preach
the gospel to those not of our faith
wherever they may be in the world. And
the revelation goes on by saying, ". . . for
I the Lord have commanded them."
(Idem.)

In this marvelous revelation given
to us in 1831, the Lord fully intends
that all of his sons and daughters
over the earth are going to have the
opportunity of hearing the gospel of the
Lord Jesus Christ. If they live the gos-
pel, they will enjoy the gift of the Holy
Ghost whereby they can testify to the
world that they know that God lives,
that Jesus Christ is his Son, and that
Joseph Smith actually saw the Father
and the Son, which I pray will be the
testimony of each and everyone of us,
in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

DECEMBER 1960

921

THE DAY
OF THE
LAMANITES

Spencer W. Kimball

of the Council of the Twelve

Some years ago I attended a conference
of missionaries in a little Arizona town
which the nearby Indians gave an
Indian name signifying "the place where
the people prayed." That was Joseph
City. A month ago I had the privilege
of going into the mission field in the
Southwest Indian Mission, and in an-
other city which could well have been
named by the Indians "the city of
hospitality," we held a conference of
the missionaries, and this city was
Snowflake.

The missionaries of the Southwest In-
dian Mission told of their labors among
the Indians, and perhaps this is one of
the most foreign of all foreign missions,
and is in a land of strange tongues and
colorful people, a place of high mountain
coolness and near sea level desert heat —
a land where a new amalgamation of
peoples and kindreds is taking place,
and where the gospel of Jesus Christ is
neutralizing the centuries of dwindling
unbelief.

I found evidence of waning super-
stition and of growing faith in the gospel.
I saw people who have for centuries
been as chaff before the wind settling
down to industry and security and
permanence — a people who for more
than a millennium have been "as a
vessel . . . tossed about upon the waves,
without sail or anchor, or without any-
thing wherewith to steer her. . . ."
(Mormon 5:18.) I saw them beginning
to accept the gospel of Christ.

I saw them reclaiming their forfeited
blessings which the Lord reserved ". . .
for the gentiles who shall possess the
land." (Ibid., 5:19.) I saw accelera-
tion in their progress and the time is
at hand when the Lord will ". . . re-
member the covenant which he made
with Abraham and unto all the house
of Israel." (Ibid., 5:20.) ". . . and as the
Lord liveth he will remember the cove-
nant which he hath made with them.
And he knoweth their prayers. . . ."
(Ibid., 8:23-24.)

The work is unfolding, and blinded
eyes begin to see, and scattered people
begin to gather. I saw a striking con-
trast in the progress of the Indian people
today as against that of only fifteen

years ago. Truly the scales of darkness
are falling from their eyes, and they are
fast becoming a white and delightsome
people*

In this mission alone there are 8400-
plus members of the Church. As I
visited this area fifteen years ago, there
were ninety-four. "Are they faithful?"
I am asked. And the answer is, "Not all
of them. They are just about like their
white cousins in the stakes of Zion."
"Are they making headway?" And the
answer is, "Yes. Perhaps relatively
greater headway than we ourselves."

Indians are people, and the longer I
serve with them the more I realize that
they respond to the same teaching and
kindness and love as others do. They
have the same emotions. Some can be
godless, but most of them are religious.
I found that faith is a basic element in
their lives. I learned of a Navajo
couple who rushed their baby to the
mission home for a blessing — It was livid
white, seemed to be dead. It was soon
well and playing around — and the In-
dian woman who lost her hearing, who
received it back through the administra-
tion of the young missionaries; or the
elder whose Navajo mother asked him
if he had faith in Heavenly Father when
the little brother was lying desperately
ill, and whose little brother was wholly
well the next morning after he himself
had hid in a closet and prayed for his
brother.

Yes, the Indians have faith — a rather
simple, pure, and unadulterated faith, as
evidenced by the Indian mother who
asked the elders to come to the hospital
to bless her sick child. The next day
the elders called at her home and asked,
"How is the little boy?" And she re-
joined, "Oh, he's all right," in a tone
such as to say, "Well, you blessed him,
didn't you? Of course he's well."

And another Indian whose hands
were badly burned was in excruciating
pain. The administration brought al-
most immediate relief, and she was using
her hands in a day or two. There was
the Indian family who pleaded with the
elders to pray for rain for their crops
and for the grass and for the cattle and
the sheep. "But please be careful," they
warned. "The last time the elders
prayed for rain, it came too hard, and
the sheep corrals were washed out and
some of the sheep were drowned."

There was the Hopi elder in a Phoenix
hospital with his arm and leg para-
lyzed, and with no use or movement.
He asked the nurse to find a Mormon
elder. A bishop was called in who
purchased oil, consecrated it, and ad-
ministered to the Indian patient. "He
sure had faith in the Lord," said the
bishop. "We talked a little while, and
I asked him if he could wiggle his toes,
and you should have seen the expression
on his face when he tried. Sure enough
they moved, and before we left him he
could raise the leg, and when I visited

him last Sunday he could move both
the leg and the arm."

The day of the Lamanites is here!
Young white missionaries throughout the
Church are happy in the service, glad
that they were called to this special
mission, some planning to change their
college majors when they return from
their missions so they can work among
the Indians.

I see a dependent people becoming in-
dependent; for example, I see them
coming in their pickups to meetings,
whereas a decade ago they needed to be
picked up by the missionaries, fed, and
coddled. Some still must learn, but
they are making progress; for instance,
a party was arranged by two mission-
aries— the Indian people to bring the
food, the elders to furnish the punch.
When they assembled, they had only
punch to drink. Later another party
was arranged — the Indians to bring the
food and the elders to bring the punch.
They had both food and drink. They
are learning.

We called for a picture of the Indian
elders. Twenty of them came — five full-
blood Navajo boys, and fifteen who were
part Navajo and Apache and Ute and
Sioux. One of the Navajo elders whose
mother and family lived less than a
hundred miles away in the same mis-
sion had not asked for leave to go and
visit them, and he had served eight
months in the mission. One Indian
elder said: "The first missionaries
planted a tree on the reservation years
ago. Now the tree is bearing fruit —
Navajo elders! The young tree yielded
little fruit, but the aging tree more
fruit — more elders."

There was the Navajo elder who testi-
fied of his happiness and said that when
in battle — I think it was in Korea — he
had dreamed one night that he was
with his parents back on the reservation,
but he awakened to find himself in mud
and water and fire. Now he is in the
midst of another dream, a dream so
glorious, he said, that he hopes he will
never awaken from it.

These Indian elders are well-groomed,
neat, smiling, and equal to their white
companions — handsome and sincere —
some struggling in the acquisition of the
difficult English language, and others
coming through the Utah Placement
Program speaking perfect English and
displaying the best of our own culture.
White elders feel fortunate when they
are lucky enough to have a Navajo
companion.

I see these Indian youth praying and
preaching and administering to the sick,
and I remember the statement of the
Prophet Joseph: "Take Jacob Zundell
and Frederick H. Moeser . . . and send
them to Germany and when you meet
an Arab send him to Arabia; when you
find an Italian send him to Italy: and
a Frenchman, to France; or an Indian,
that is suitable, send him among the

922

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

Indians. Send them to the different
places where they belong." (DHC
5:368.)

At last the Indians are suitable. I
heard them bear their witness, saw them
shed tears of joy, heard them express
their affection for loved ones. I saw
Indian boys actually coming in to the
president to offer their services as mis-
sionaries. That couldn't have happened
a decade ago. As we look into the fu-
ture, surely we shall see thousands of
Indian missionaries, for through our
various agencies we are now training
probably three thousand little Indian
boys in our various departments who are
growing toward missionary work. Very
soon there will be an Indian boy paired
off in missionary work with each white
boy, and this will happen in the other
Lamanite missions, I am sure.

The day of the Lamanites is nigh.
For years they have been growing de-
lightsome, and they are now becoming
white and delightsome, as they were
promised. In this picture of the twenty
Lamanite missionaries, fifteen of the
twenty were as light as Anglos; five
were darker but equally delightsome.
The children in the home placement
program in Utah are often lighter than
their brothers and sisters in the hogans
on the reservation.

At one meeting a father and mother
and their sixteen-year-old daughter were
present, the little member girl — sixteen
— sitting between the dark father and
mother, and it was evident she was
several shades lighter than her parents —
on the same reservation, in the same
hogan, subject to the same sun and wind
and weather. There was the doctor in
a Utah city who for two years had had
an Indian boy in his home who stated
that he was some shades lighter than
the younger brother just coming into
the program from the reservation. These
young members of the Church are
changing to whiteness and to delight-
someness. One white elder jokingly said
that he and his companion were donat-
ing blood regularly to the hospital in
the hope that the process might be
accelerated.

The missionaries are having great
experiences in proselyting, in teaching,
in organizing, in carrying on Primaries,
Relief Societies. They direct women in
making quilts and towels and pot
holders, which they say they can sell
faster than they can make them; but
always a Relief Society bazaar is in their
future plans. They pound up broken
pottery and clay to make new pottery.
They do beadwork, learn cooking; they
are taught first aid, bleeding-stoppage,
use of splints, resuscitation, moving the
injured; they are taught to speak and to
sing. Three lovely Lamanite sisters
sang a trio in one of our meetings. Two
elders in one area were actually teach-
ing the women how to make diapers.

We find the Indians are learning to

be adaptable and resourceful, and from
tradition they are coming to truth, from
legend to fact, from sand paintings and
sings to administration and ordinances.
The Indians are beginning to pay their
tithes. They are living the Word of
Wisdom. They are attending their
meetings. They are having family
prayers, and for a period of this year
the tithes in that mission are said to
have been more than the budget for the
mission.

They are grateful for that which is
being done for them. A typical little
nine-year-old Indian prayed: "Father in
heaven, please bless the missionaries so
their success will be good." A typical
Indian woman pleaded: "When can I
be baptized?" And the answer was,
"When you have learned a little more
of the gospel." An Apache saddle maker,
when given the Book of Mormon les-
sons, said: "I know that story. I know
that it is true. My old people told me
about it."

The Indians have legends which might
be reminiscent of the three Nephites, of
the creation, of the flood, of the coming
of the Christ to them. They are be-
ginning to recognize the similarity be-
tween their distorted tradition stories
and the truth which has been recorded.

A Jicarilla — Apache Indian elder, first
counselor in the branch presidency,
drives sixty-four miles to his meetings
with his family and sixty-four miles
home each time, and he seldom misses a
meeting, except in blizzard weather. He
is sharp and clean and handsome and
conducts the meetings with dignity. He
speaks excellent English, and this is
again in fulfilment of my own patriar-
chal blessing, in which I was promised:
"You will sjee them organized and be
prepared to stand as the bulwark round
this people."

In the temple, in the June excur-
sion, were a Navajo groom and a Pima
bride, a Cherokee groom and a Navajo
bride; and these, typical of the many
Indians, are taking seriously to the gospel
program. When they were in this con-
vention, the good Mesa people graciously
took care of their needs, and this again
was in fulfilment of the prophecy of
Joseph Smith. He said:

"There will be tens of thousands of
Latter-day Saints who will be gathered
in the Rocky Mountains, and there they
will open the door for the establishing
of the gospel among the Lamanites who
will receive the gospel and their endow-
ments and the blessings of God." (Dis-
courses of Wilford Woodruff, pp. 30-39.)

One's heart is touched when he sees
thirty or forty little Hopi boys and girls
gathered together in Primary, being
taught by nineteen-year-old mission-
aries, and it is stirring even more to see
twenty little wild Apache Indians gallop-
ing over the hills on their burros to
attend Primary at Fort Apache.

The young missionaries are learning

the difficult Navajo language, and the
older couples are using largely the lan-
guage of love. The Navajo tongue is so
difficult that it is said to have been used
to send code messages in World War II
because the Japanese could not decode
it. It is heartwarming to hear the young
Navajo elder struggling with his English
pronunciation and vocabulary, but never
hesitating to express his thoughts con-
vincingly and bearing his testimony im-
pressively. He had been told by his
dying mother when he was a little boy:
"Go to Mormon Church. It is true
church." He choked and struggled with
his tears.

One devoted missionary couple was
stuck in the snow last winter, and the
husband pushed the car while the wife
steered it. In doing so he fell and broke
his knee and then pleaded with the
president: "Please do not send us home.
Put us in the hospital for a little time."
He was given a metal knee and then
crutches, and Indians who saw him
hobbling around said: "Anyone as sin-
cere as that ought to be listened to." And
this mother who now has her children
reared told of her patriarchal blessing
given long years ago, indicating she
would go on a mission with her hus-
band, but since she was tied with her
large family of little children, her hus-
band filled his mission alone and was
killed in an auto accident returning
home. How could her blessing ever be
fulfilled, she wondered, with children
to educate and sons to send on missions,
and she in her widowhood? But when
the family was educated and the sons
had filled their missions, she married
another man, a convert, and together
they are now fulfilling the patriarchal
blessing and filling glorious missions.

The day of the Lamanites has come.
The Indians of this country, particularly
of the southwest, have many blessings
which are theirs today but which were
not theirs yesterday. Government agen-
cies, other groups as well as ourselves,
have been conscious of their former
serious plight. But today the dark
clouds are dissipating. Whereas only a
decade ago tens of thousands of children
were without schooling, today practically
every child has some educational oppor-
tunity. May I quote a paragraph from
my address to this conference in 1947
regarding these Indians:

"The health conditions are deplorable.
They have but one full-time dentist for
63,000 people and no field nurse or
doctor. The death rate is very high,
being 16 per thousand as against 6.36
for the Church. The large family lives
in the dirt hogan being one small circu-
lar room with dirt floor, no windows,
and with a stove or fire in the center.
All members of the family sleep on
sheep pelts on the floor. There is no
privacy, practically no furniture or
equipment. There are no sanitary con-
veniences inside or out. With a single

DECEMBER I960

923

towel, a common cup, no hot water nor
disinfectants, it is easy to see why tra-
choma, impetigo, and other skin diseases
run through the family, and why dysen-
tery, venereal diseases, and tuberculosis
run rampant. In a survey of thirty-one
families it was found that an average of
three in each family had tuberculosis.
In their scattered condition, and with
such limited hospital facilities, many lie
in their hogans, coughing in the air,
spitting on the floor, to finally die on the
dirt floor without medical assistance. . . ."
(See The Improvement Era, May 1947,
p. 348.)

But today there are hospitals, doctors,
nurses, and dentists. Many families live
in comfortable homes, fairly well fur-
nished. Disease is disappearing, tuber-
culosis much under control, and
sanitation greatly improving. In our
recent examination of over four hundred
children in our health clinic as we
brought them into Utah for this fall,
we found that there were no positive

results from our X-ray examinations.

In the,40's these people had an aver-
age income of about $81 a year. They
lived upon land which to most of us
seemed worthless, barren, and for-
bidding; but the desolate land is pro-
ducing oil and gas and uranium and
coal and lumber, and many millions
of dollars are flowing into the tribal
treasury. In early days it was each fam-
ily for itself; today the Tribal Council
is using wisely these vast sums to build
highways and hospitals and schools and
to give scholarships. What a strange
paradox, that the land given to the
Indians, desolate and unwanted, turns
out to be the source of many blessings!
Was not Providence smiling on these
folks and looking toward this day?

Today we teach the gospel to the
Indian youth, and tomorrow there will
be thousands of them on missions.
Nearly all their marriages will be per-
formed in the temples. They will give
leadership in wards and stakes which

will be organized in their areas, and
with their white brothers they will be-
come leaders in the kingdom. Groups
of stakes are organized into regional
minority missions. About 320 of the
2300 Indians in Brigham City are
members of the Church, and we have a
delightful chapel which President
McKay dedicated there.

At Albuquerque, Riverside, at Chilloco
and at Lawrence in Kansas, at Carson
City in Nevada, at Chemawa in Oregon,
at Anadarko in Oklahoma, and else-
where, our youth — hundreds and hun-
dreds of them — are receiving comparable
seminary training. At Aztec, Gallup,
Richfield, Flagstaff, Holbrook, Snow-
flake, and Winslow we are training
them in connection with the govern-
ment peripheral schools.

About 420 Indian children are re-
ceiving the superior training in Utah
homes under the educational placement
program. These children are being fed,
housed, clothed, and loved by the self-

Saturday Morning Session,
October 8, 1960

ANSWER
TO THE
CALL

Nathan Eldon Tanner

Assistant to the Council of the Twelve

President McKay and brethren and
sisters, I stand before you this morning
in all humility. I wish to express my
sincere appreciation of the confidence
shown by the General Authorities, Pres-
ident McKay, and those associated with
him, in calling one so unprepared to
hold such a high office in this the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints. No one with any less ability
could be called to this position. I would
like to assure President McKay and
members of the General Authorities and
you my brethren and sisters that I shall
do my best and am prepared to dedicate

my life and my best to the work of the
Lord.

I know that this is the Church of
Jesus Christ, the kingdom of God here
upon the earth, and I know that I shall
need your faith and prayers, and I ask
that I may have them, that I may carry
on in a way that will become one in
this responsible position, that I may rep-
resent the Church wherever I go in a
way that will be pleasing to our Heav-
enly Father.

I should like at this time to express
my sincere appreciation to my family.
My paternal great-great-grandfather was

PLEDGE

MYSELF

Franklin D. Richards

Assistant to the Council of the Twelve

What a beautiful song: "I Stand All
Amazed at the Love Jesus Offers Me!" —
I feel that way very deeply this morning,
my brothers and sisters. I, like Presi-
dent Tanner, feel appreciative and
grateful for the many blessings that have
been mine. I likewise appreciate the
noble heritage with which I have been
blessed, and I appreciate the. wonderful
family that I have and the devotion
they have to the Church and particularly
the devotion my wife has shown. We
have enjoyed the past nine months in
the mission field, more than any other
time in our lives, and the reason is that
we have been serving the Lord to a
greater degree than ever before.
President McKay spoke yesterday

about love being the first and second
great commandments of the Lord, that
we must have this love for our Father
in heaven and his Son Jesus Christ, and
likewise for our brother and neighbor.
I have love in my heart this morning,
President McKay, for you and for my
brethren that are presiding over the
affairs of the kingdom of God, and I
have love in my heart for my fellow
men. I can truthfully say that I have
no enmity nor hatred toward any man,
and I pray that the Lord will sustain
me in this position.

I feel wholly inadequate as an indi-
vidual; however, I feel the way Nephi
did when his father Lehi asked him to
go and get the plates, "I will go and

924

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

less people of Utah who take them into
their finest homes — philanthropic peo-
ple who come to love the Indian children
as their own, and who give them every
advantage — cultural, spiritual, and edu-
cational, and who train them in scout-
ing organizational work, in family-
prayers, in seminary, and in home
activities. I quote from a recent letter
from an authority on Indian life and
education:

"I think you have a very commend-
able program and one which is prob-
ably the only positive approach to the
Indian problem in the United States.
I have spent a great part of my life
living with or working with Indian peo-
ple and have yet to see any program
which has taken the Indian out of him-
self and started him down the road to
progress."

As these children complete their grade
and high school work, Brigham Young
University is ready to receive them, and
special guidance courses and training

advisers give them leadership, and each
year now our Indian students parade in
cap and gown with the other hundreds
of graduates of this great institution.

We have follow-up programs to help
the Indian youth gain employment as
they complete their schoolwork.

A new class instruction program is
organized on the reservation, whereby
the little Indians are given religious
training. At present some 2500 little
fellows present themselves weekly or
oftener to the young missionaries for
religious instruction, assigned by the
parents to the church of their choice.
These little ones are being taught in
about sixty classes, and young mission-
aries are proving their mettle in training
them.

Two young elders teach 102 children
in their classes, and another couple, a
Navajo and a white elder, are teaching
135 little boys and girls together with
some of their parents who asked for the
privilege of coming.

Not only the southwest Indians, but
Lamanites in general, are facing an
open door to education, culture, refine-
ment, progress, and the gospel of Jesus
Christ. The Church has spent its mil-
lions in Hawaii and New Zealand and
other islands to provide schools for the
young Lehites. Surely, no descendants
need go now without an education, and
schools in Mexico will be followed by
schools in other nations. Surely the
number of deprived ones is being re-
duced, and opportunity is knocking at
their door. Hundreds of Lamanites are
serving in mission fields in both Amer-
icas and in the islands of the sea. La-
manites are exercising their priesthood
and rearing their families in righteous-
ness. A new world is open to them,
and they are grasping the opportunities.
God bless the Lamanites and hasten
the day of their total emancipation from
the thraldom of their yesterday.

I pray this in the name of Jesus Christ.
Amen.

a very close friend of Joseph the Prophet.
And on my mother's side, you have read
of James Brown and his work, and
you know Hugh B. Brown, who is my
mother's brother. And I want to thank
all of them, my father, who was one
of the finest men that I ever knew and
my loving mother, and particularly I
should like at this time to express my
sincere and deep appreciation to Elder
Hugh B. Brown for the influence that
he has had on my life since I was a
child. I have had that great privilege
of associating closely with him through-
out my life.

I should like to express my apprecia-
tion to my wife. Probably I could let
you know the kind of woman she is by
quoting my mother. She said to me
one day, "You are fortunate, my boy, to
have Sarah as your wife. She has been
a great support to you as a wife and a
wonderful mother. It is not everybody
that could live with you as she has and
put up with the things which she has
to!"

We have five lovely daughters, and
I should like to say to them that I ap-
preciate how loyal and faithful they
have been, how little worry and concern
they have caused us and how they are

prepared to accept any call in the
Church.

Speaking of my family, I suppose I
should tell you that we have twenty-two
grandchildren. I hope and pray that
they will carry on in the Church.

President McKay, again I wish to
thank you sincerely and those who are
supporting you in this my call, and again
I wish to say that I love the Lord with
all my heart, and I pledge at this time
that I will serve him and you with all
my might, mind, and strength, and I
pray for your faith and prayers and
God's blessings, and I do it in the name
of Jesus Christ. Amen.

do the things which the Lord hath com-
manded, for I know that the Lord giveth
no commandments unto the children of
men, save he shall prepare a way for
them that they may accomplish the thing
which he commandeth them." (1 Nephi
3:7.)

I know that through these modern
revelations and by listening to the words
of inspiration and revelation given by
our prophets today, that we do receive
great strength. I love to read modern
revelation, and I love to sit at the feet
of the great men who are presiding over
the affairs of this Church and to learn
what we as servants of the Lord should
do to further God's work here upon the
earth.

President Moyle yesterday quoted a
statement from the Book of Mormon
wherein the Lord said that "Adam fell
that men might be; and men are, that
they might have joy." (2 Nephi 2:25.)
I want to testify to you that the greatest
joy that can come into the life of any
man is to give this "pearl of great price,"
the gospel of Jesus Christ, the power of
God unto salvation, to others. That is
why Sister Richards and I have been
having such great joy this last nine
months, because we have been giving
the gospel of Jesus Christ to others. We
are in a new era of growth and develop-
ment in the Church of Jesus Christ.
The kingdom of God is going forward
that the kingdom of heaven may come.

We in the Northwest have been
blessed abundantly because we have
been active in spreading the gospel and
have recognized the importance and
shortness of time. The Lord has blessed
us in many ways. First, by bringing
numbers of people together in groups
we have been able to teach the gospel
to more people. Secondly, as the mem-
bers of the Church have shared the
gospel with their friends, many more
people have been brought into the king-
dom of God than otherwise would have
been, and those members of wards and
stakes and branches and districts that
have shared the gospel have been blessed
abundantly themselves. And thirdly,
spirituality in the wards and branches

DECEMBER I960

925

has increased; the inactive have become
active; and the people are happy and
are having great joy; and this is as it
should be.

Many have said, "How do you find
these people that are interested in know-
ing about the gospel?" We have asked
the people of the Northwest to ask their
neighbors every day, "What do you
know about the Mormon Church?" And
whatever their answer may be, our next
question is, "Would you like to know
more?" Our missionaries are busy
teaching in groups those that would like

to know more, and they are so busy that
they are obliged to use automobiles and
do practically all of their proselyting
and arranging meetings over the tele-
phone. The Lord is greatly blessing the
missionaries and the Saints in the North-
west area, and the gospel is going for-
ward by leaps and bounds as it is in
practically every other area of the world.
I am grateful to my Father in heaven
that among my other blessings I have
the opportunity of spending my time
and energy in his service. I pledge all
of my efforts, President McKay, to the

Church and to you as prophet, seer, and
revelator, and to the spreading of the
gospel of Jesus Christ. In concluding I
would like to read from one of the
modern prophets, President Heber J.
Grant. He said:

"The most glorious thing that has ever
happened in the history of the world
since the Savior himself lived on the
earth is that God himself saw fit to visit
the earth with his beloved, Only Be-
gotten Son, our Redeemer and Savior,
and to appear to the boy Joseph." (Gos-
pel Standards, p. 16.) And it is our duty

GRATITUDE

Theodore M. Burton

Assistant to the Council of the Twelve

President McKay, President Clark, if he
were here, President Moyle, members
of the General Authorities, my dear
brothers and sisters, this is a humbling
experience.

When President McKay called me this
morning into his office and asked me
how I felt, I told him I was frightened.
I am frightened, but only to this extent —
frightened that I might not measure up
to the responsibility that has been given
me. President McKay told me that my
responsibility would be to principally
bear witness to the divinity of Jesus
Christ, and this I can do from the bottom
of my heart. I do know that Jesus is
the Christ. I have covenanted with him
to be his son. I have covenanted to
bear that name, and I pray that I might
always bear it honorably, that I might

never do anything to bring dishonor
to that glorious name.

I have wondered since the call was
given me why I was called to this posi-
tion. I do not stand here alone. This
call has come to a great many people,
people who have influenced my life,
even before I was born. As the other
brethren have said, I, too, come from a
long line of forebears who bore responsi-
ble positions in this Church. My great-
grandfather Burton was a member of
the Church and came into the Church
with his wife and one of his daughters.
My grandfather Burton was a young
man only fifteen years of age, who had
heard about the Mormons in Canada,
and he said that he would disown his
parents if they joined the Church. So
he left them and went down into Ohio,
and there the missionaries contacted
him and brought him into the Church.
He then went back, and on his knees
apologized to his father and mother for
his lack of insight, for his lack of under-
standing, and asked their forgiveness.
Grandfather Burton came here with
some of the very earliest pioneers as a
bugler to Brigham Young, and he be-
came one of Brigham Young's constant
companions, along with Brother Lot
Smith and Brother Porter Rockwell. I
have read Grandfather's journals; I
know how devoted he was to the

Church. He was a member of the
Presiding Bishopric for many, many
years.

He married my grandmother, whose
maiden name was Garr. The Garrs,
too, are wonderful people of whom I
am very proud. They were among the
very first who came into the Church,
and Great-grandfather Fielding Garr
was one of those seven men chosen to
perform that very special burial mission
when the Prophet was assassinated, so I
have been told. Grandmother walked
across the plains as a young girl eight
years of age, and said how happy she
was when she got a thorn in her foot
because that was the only time she was
able to ride on the tailgate of the wagon
until they got the thorn out of her foot.
So she was one of those early pioneers
who helped establish and build this
country.

The Moyles have been in the Church
for many years. My mother was Flor-
ence Moyle. I am proud of the Moyles.
Great-grandfather Moyle and Grand-
father Moyle helped build the Salt Lake
Temple, and when you see the carving
on the east side of the temple, "Holiness
to the Lord," Great-grandfather did that
as a missionary called to work on the
temple.

I am proud of the Cannels. They,
too, came into the Church early. Great -

". . . TWO
OF A
FAMILY . . ."

Carl W. Buehner

of the Presiding Bishopric

My dear brethren and sisters, this to
me has been a very stirring session of
conference. We have heard the vital
statistics of the Church, and we have
sustained the General Authorities of the
Church. From among the priesthood
have also been chosen three devoted and
humble men to take a place with the
other General Authorities of the Church.
I know each of them well. They have
given dedicated service to the work of

the Lord, and with all my heart I can
say to them that their joy will be even
greater as they travel among the people
of the Church.

I am always thrilled to participate
with you in one of these great general
conferences of the Church. I keenly
feel, however, that even though con-
ference time is a wonderful time, it is
even more wonderful for those who
have already spoken.

926

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

above all others to go forth at home and
abroad and proclaim the gospel of the
Lord Jesus Christ. I know that in order
to do this we must live close to the Lord.
President McKay together with Presi-
dent Clark and President Moyle in the
beautiful blessing that they gave me
when they set me apart as president of
the Northwestern States Mission told
me to live close to the Lord and listen
to his whisperings and have the courage
to execute them. When Brother and
Sister Lee were in our mission field this
last summer, they brought many bless-

ings to the Saints and the missionaries,
and already we have seen many join
the Church who listened to their words.
Likewise Brother and Sister Lee im-
pressed upon us that we should not be
too busy taking care of details and
mechanics to listen to the whisperings
of the Spirit.

I testify to you my brothers and sisters
that the greatest message that we have is
that the gospel of Jesus Christ has been
restored, the power of God unto salva-
tion. I am not ashamed of the gospel
of Jesus Christ. I know that God lives,

that Jesus is indeed his Son, the Re-
deemer of the world, and that Joseph
Smith was a prophet of God — one of the
greatest prophets that has lived on this
earth, according to the word of the Lord
contained in our holy book of Doctrine
and Covenants. (See D&C 135:3.) I
know that David O. McKay is the
prophet of the Lord today, and I know
that we need a prophet on the earth
today. I propose to sustain President
McKay with all of my might and
strength. I say this and dedicate myself
unto the Church, in the name of Jesus
Christ. Amen.

grandfather came here to Utah to protect
his daughter from the Mormons, and
when he got here he joined the Church
and was grateful that his daughter found
such an outstanding man as Grand-
father James Moyle.

So I am proud of all of these people
who have made it possible for me to
be here. I am grateful to my Sunday
School teachers. I am grateful to my
Primary teachers. In my day we had
Religion Class. I am grateful to those
sisters who labored with us when we
caused them many hours of trouble and
concern, I am sure, but they taught me
the divinity of Jesus Christ, for which
I will always be grateful.

I came of goodly parents. My father
and mother are people of whom I am
very proud. I am grateful for the asso-
ciation I have had with my wife. She,
too, comes from a long line of people
who have been in this Church for many
generations. Her father, who is still
living, over ninety years of age, is still
president of his high priests quorum.
I am grateful to her, for she has stood
by me from the time we were married
and has been loyal and faithful in
every respect.

I am proud of my son. I only have
one son, and so I have to make up in
quality what I lack in quantity. I am
proud of him. When my great-uncle

Henry Moyle was patriarch of Alpine
Stake, he gave me my patriarchal bless-
ing. He told me that we would have
responsibilities to take upon us. He
told me that my children would have to
bear part of that responsibility, too. So
I pray that my son will live close to the
Lord and be able to accept his share
of responsibility when that comes.

I have just returned from the West
German Mission, and I bring you all
the love of those wonderful people. I
have spent just about one-fifth of my
life among German-speaking people. I
love the Swiss people; I love the Austrian
people; I love those German people with
whom I have been working. They are
simply marvelous Saints, strong and
stalwart, loyal and true, and they are
about to strengthen the Church in that
mighty nation so that we will have
stakes of Zion there, too. I am hoping
and praying that I shall also be present
when that glorious day comes, when
we can establish on the continent of
Europe, among foreign-speaking peo-
ples, stakes of Zion. I know that their
hearts are filled with love of God as
yours are, and I bring you their greet-
ings and their love, and I am proud to
be associated with a Church so inter-
national in its character that we can
love people regardless of what language
they speak, what color they may be,

or what nation they represent. We
have covenanted to be brothers and
sisters, and this love that was spoken
of before is the love that exists in this
Church today.

Without multiplying words, then,
President McKay, I accept this calling
with humility and pray for your help
and for your instruction.

My brothers and sisters, I will rise and
do better than my best, because I know
that I have been called to this position
by a Prophet of God who speaks in the
name of Jesus Christ. I bear you my
testimony that he is a prophet of God.
I bear you my testimony that Joseph
Smith is a prophet of God. I bear you
my testimony that these men with whom
I have associated in the mission field,
and these authorities who are sitting
before you today, are prophets, seers,
and revelators, for I have seen prophecies
fulfilled that they have made. I bear
testimony that Jesus is the Christ, that
this is the Church of Jesus Christ, pos-
sessing all the authority that is necessary
to establish and maintain it upon the
face of the earth today. I know it will
grow until all people can recognize and
bow their knee and confess that Jesus
is the Christ, and that his kingdom is
upon the earth. This testimony I give
you in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Let me tell you a couple of little
stories that I think you may appreciate.
I heard one of our fine sisters bear her
testimony in fast meeting not long ago
and express her gratitude for four won-
derful little boys that had been born
into their home. The parents loved
these four little youngsters immensely.
Word came that they were going to have
another little arrival in the home, and
the family all decided that the fifth

should be a little girl. They pleaded
with our Heavenly Father that this
might be the case. He heard the plea
of the family, and when the baby was
born, it was a girl. This little girl
grew up in this home, knowing how
much she was wanted and appreciated.
She seemed very much loved by the
four little boys, the father and the
mother. Each poured out his affections
upon her. She grew up in this at-

mosphere, knowing she was very im-
portant and very much wanted in the
home. When she was somewhere
between four and five years of age, and
while she was in the midst of her family
and feeling very happy about her home
and her little brothers, she said, "Mother,
I'll bet you were really surprised when
you found out I was a Mormon, too."
In the sight of our Heavenly Father,
every one of us is a very important

DECEMBER 1960

927

person. I wish we could always re-
member this and realize how much we
are loved by him and reciprocate that
love by living close to his teachings.

The other little story I should like to
tell emanated from the Primary Chil-
dren's Hospital. This is one of the
great institutions we have in the Church.
Those of you who have been there know
something about its little patients, some
of whom are there for an extended period
of time, even flat on their backs on their
little beds, and some more fortunate
are in wheelchairs. Very few can get
around on their own. I have never been
in a place where there are happier
patients than those in our Primary
Children's Hospital. Employed there as
a nurse is a very lovely woman who lost
her husband and who has a family of
her own to raise. The oldest boy of
this woman was old enough to receive
a call to go on a mission. The children
in the hospital, most of whom have so
little, had such a love and devotion for
their nurse, whose son was now going
into the mission field, that they sent a
little Indian boy, who had a broken
leg, but who could get around with
crutches, to solicit a contribution from
these little patients. You understand
they have very little, many of them
being there as Church-service cases. I
understood they practically cleaned out
all of the assets of these children and
gathered up a total of $6.68. This was
presented to the missionary as their
appreciation for his wonderful mother
who was their nurse and to help the
great missionary program move forward.

We are asked to give two or three
pennies for each year of our age an-
nually to help this institution. As you
catch the spirit of these children, you
often wish you were a thousand years
old when they come to collect these
pennies. I have frequently said, "God
bless the Primary and their hospital
for what they are doing to bless our
children!"

May I say just a word about a lovely
experience I enjoyed in being able to
go back to the land of my birth after
an absence of about sixty years and to
visit the city where I was born. I had
the opportunity of bearing my testi-
mony at a district conference in Stutt-
gart, Germany. I saw a little building
which more than sixty years ago housed
the Stuttgart Branch. Meetings are not
held here any more. They have a
beautiful chapel of their own. It was
in this little branch chapel that I re-
ceived a name and a blessing. In the
areas close to Stuttgart, I saw the little
villages in which my father and mother
were born. They later moved to Stutt-
gart and were there married. This is
where the missionaries found them and
taught them the gospel.

I was also made very much aware of
the fact that Stuttgart today is almost
a new city. I was told that about seventy
percent of the original city had been
bombed out during the war. The scars
of war are still evident, as you see large
buildings with no windows, no doors,
the roofs demolished, and parts of the
walls destroyed. Many new buildings
have been erected.

I began thinking of my own situation
and giving credit to the great missionary
program for my many blessings. The
scripture in Jeremiah 3:14 says, ". . . and
I will take you one of a city, and two
of a family, and bring you to Zion."
I wondered why my father and my
mother were those who were gathered
two from a family. This has caused
many serious reflections. I was just at
the age when I might have been in-
volved with the two world wars that
were fought in that land. The destruc-
tion of property and the millions of
people who lost their lives might just
as well have included the Buehner
family.

I do not know whether my parents
responded the first time the missionaries
knocked on their door or the second time

or the third time. I am grateful, how-
ever, that the missionaries knocked on
the door of my parents sufficient times
to convince them that they had the great
message of the age to give to them, the
story that God had spoken again in this
day to the boy Prophet Joseph Smith
and through him restored the gospel.
To me there is nothing more important
or nothing greater. I appreciate so much
that my parents accepted the gospel and
that like thousands of others had the
desire of coming to this great land of
America.

I also enjoyed the privilege of going
into Berlin. Berlin, once a very proud
and beautiful city, is now a divided city.
I saw what happens when a city and a
people are divided. West Berlin is a
little island in Russian territory. There
is one highway 110 miles long on which
supplies are taken to West Berlin by
truck and car, and there is also a twenty-
mile wide air strip permitting planes to
fly in and out of the city. When an
airplane for any reason gets out of the
twenty-mile allowed zone, it is over
Russian territory.

I admire the faith and stability of the
wonderful members of the Church we
have behind the Iron Curtain. After
hearing the president of the East German
Mission relate a number of spine-tingling
experiences, I could not help thinking
how grateful many people must be that
the gospel touched their lives and
brought them away from situations such
as those being endured by members
living in this condition.

I learned that in the Russian schools
behind the Iron Curtain, children are
taught that there is no such thing as a
God, that everything is material and
force. These children come home and
challenge their parents and say, "Why
don't you get up to date? In school we
hear every day that there is no such
thing as God, and yet you have us kneel
down and pray each night and morning
and ask our Heavenly Father to bless

HOW TO
PREPARE FOR
MISSIONS

Bruce R. McConkie

of the First Council of the Seventy

We in this Church have a solemn
obligation to carry the message of sal-
vation to our Father's other children in
the world. To us the Lord has given
this command: "Go ye into all the
world, preach the gospel to every crea-
ture, . . ." (D&C 68:8.)

This call to missionary service does
not leave us any choice or option as to
the course we should pursue. It is not
merely a permissive invitation which
allows us to spread the gospel message
on a voluntary basis, or if we find it
convenient to do so. The decree is man-
datory. We have no choice about it, if
we are to retain the favor of God. The

Lord has laid upon our shoulders the
obligation to spread the gospel, to raise
the warning voice, to gather in the lost
sheep of the house of Israel. If we neg-
lect to do so, we have violated our trust
and failed to comply with a divine
directive.

When we come into the Church, we
covenant in the waters of baptism that
we will do missionary work. We enter
into a solemn contract with Deity that
we will bear testimony of the restora-
tion of the gospel on every appropriate
occasion. We agree "to stand as wit-
nesses of God at all times and in all
things, and in all places" that we "may

928

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

and watch over us. How can this be
when there is no God?" Because of
such a reaction, many persons have
escaped to the West Zone. President
Fetzer indicated that there are strong
and devoted members behind the Iron
Curtain in almost sufficient numbers to
organize a stake there. Of course, such
a stake can never be organized under
these circumstances. I feel to say, "God
bless those wonderful people there."

As we drove into areas in East Berlin,
I observed the great industrial area of
that city, silent and unproductive. There
was no smoke coming from the large
smokestacks. There seemed to be no
activity of any kind. I had a feeling,
without having had the privilege of
going into these buildings or even
through this area, that the machinery
had all been dismantled and taken into
Russian territory. I do not know what
the future is for this city, but after
carefully viewing the situation, I hope
the day comes when Berlin can again be
reunited as a proud and noble city and
reunite the German-speaking people.

In London our guide referred to these
areas that had been bombed out as
"blitzed." As we drove through the city,
every few miles he would say, "Here is
another area that was 'blitzed' during
the war."

All over Europe a tremendous con-
struction program is underway. People
seem happy. They seem well-dressed
and even prosperous. They do not have
enough money to buy automobiles or to
purchase electrical appliances, but there
is full employment, and everyone seems
to be able to live fairly well.

I was thrilled, as others have already
reported, at the tremendous progress mis-
sionary work is making in these Euro-
pean countries. You have already heard
what is happening in England — I sup-
pose probably the greatest activity since
that reported in the very early days of
the Church when Wilford Woodruff,

Heber C. Kimball and others served as
missionaries.

I shall always be grateful for what this
missionary program has done for us
and our family. Our own family has
been an example of what happens to
those being gathered one of a city and
two of a family. Even though my par-
ents have been dead for twenty-five
years, there are practically a hundred of
us now because of the two that were
gathered more than sixty years ago. At

the rate we are growing, in a few more
generations, we will have a small city
of our own.

It is always wonderful to meet with
you in conference. I bear you my testi-
mony to the divinity of this great latter-
day work and want to tell you that I
find great joy in the service of the
Master. I rededicate my life to his serv-
ice and to help further the purposes of
the Almighty. I do it in the name of
Jesus Christ. Amen.

WITH STURDY WINGS

BY ROWENA CHENEY

It has been said that dreams
Are fragile things;
But all true dreamers know
This is not so.

They know that dreams are strong,
With sturdy wings
Which are designed to bear
Cargoes of hope . . . and pain-
To rise again

When hurled to earth; to dare
Oppose a thousand foes
On every flight.

That dreams are fragile, frail,

Is but a tale

Told by the timid

Who can claim no right

To dreams—

Who on a moonlit night

Retreat before the challenge

Of that light:

The ones who are

Too cautious . . . and who stray too far

Away from love to wish upon a star.

be in, even until death." (Mosiah 18:9.)
We are also bound by the command
that the Lord has given by revelation
in this day, that "it becometh every
man who hath been warned to warn
his neighbor." (D&C 88:81.) Thus we
have an affirmative, positive, definite
obligation resting upon us to do mis-
sionary work. This matter of carrying
the gospel message to the world is not
something that we can choose to do or
not, if and when we may find it to be
convenient. We are under covenant to
do it "at all times . . . and in all places
. . . even until death." (Mosiah 18:9.)
We are indebted, each of us individ-

ually, to the missionaries who brought
the gospel to us or to our ancestors;
many of us owe these missionaries more
than we owe anyone else. We received
from them the pearl of great price. We
have an obligation to discharge our debt,
and one of the very best ways in which
we can do this is to go forth ourselves
as missionaries, or otherwise to use our
talents and our means to see that others
of our Father's children have the oppor-
tunity to receive that which has been
restored in this day.

The Lord has decreed that this gospel,
which has come forth through the in-
strumentality of Joseph Smith and others,

is the very gospel that is going to be
preached in all the nations of the earth
as a witness before the Second Coming
of the Son of Man. (D&C 133:36-40.)
Since we are the ones who have this
true gospel, we alone can carry it to the
world. To carry out this command to
preach this restored gospel in all the
world, every one of us should be mis-
sionaries every day and hour of our
lives, at all times and in all places and
under all circumstances. We do not
need any particular call or any special
setting apart; we have already assumed
the obligation in the waters of baptism
to take every honorable opportunity to

DECEMBER 1960

929

tell other people about the glories and
beauties of the gospel. And there is not
anything in this world that in any way
compares in importance with the gospel.

May I make two specific suggestions
which if adhered to and followed will
very measurably train and prepare the
young people of this Church to go out
and discharge their obligations, to bear
the missionary burden, to do the thing
that they are expected to do by virtue
of Church membership.

We do our missionary work, all of us
as individuals, by telling other people
about the Church and the saving truths
which have been revealed to it. But we
have also the great organized missionary
ventures of the Church. We have stake
missions and foreign missions, and we
would like to see every worthy and
qualified young man in the Church go
out in the foreign missionary service.
We have some eight thousand of them
out now, and this, incidentally, is one
of the great evidences of the divinity of
the work in which we are engaged.
There is no other organization of any
kind that does or could do what we do
in the missionary cause — call thousands

and tens of thousands of people to leave
their employment, their educational pur-
suits, their families, loved ones, and
friends, and go out at their own expense
to carry the gospel message to the world.

However, under the circumstances in
which we live, it is not solely a matter
of inviting a young man, when he
reaches the proper age, to go and serve
in the mission field. Our young men
are faced with educational problems,
military service, employment, and other
things; they have the problem of plan-
ning and preparing, of getting their per-
sonal affairs in order, of being ready, of
having the financial requisites to sustain
themselves when the time comes for
their missionary calls.

So, the first suggestion I make is this:
We ought to have in every family in the
Church a mission savings account. This
could well start for every young man
when he is born, when he comes into
this world. It takes about $2,000, some-
thing in that vicinity, to support a per-
son in the mission cause. It takes about
$75 a month. Now those of us of modest
means may find it somewhat burden-
some suddenly to be obligated in that

amount. But if we have a mission
savings account for each male child, we
can very easily have available the nec-
essary funds when that child arrives at
missionary age.

If you would deposit, for instance,
four dollars and a few odd cents to a
young man's savings account each
month, beginning at his birth, by the
time that he is old enough to go on a
mission, without counting any interest,
you would have about one thousand
dollars accumulated. All of our young
people as they mature, as they come up
into their teens in the economy in which
we live, are able to get jobs and make
money. Now if our young men would
do this thing, if they could have instilled
into their hearts a willingness to de-
posit one-half of all they make into this
mission savings account, then without
any question, by the time they are of
missionary age there would be $2,000
or more available to support them. This
would remove the worry and burden
of financing the missionary, and the
money would have been accumulated
without any excessive or inordinate ef-
fort, and all, at least financially, would

Saturday Afternoon Session,
October 8, 1960

FULFILMENT

PROPHECY

Alvin R. Dyer

Assistant to the Council of the Twelve

With my dear wife and missionary com-
panion, we are most grateful for the
privilege of being invited to return at
this conference time to be refortified
with the spirit and the strength of these
wonderful gatherings. I want to say to
the First Presidency of the Church that
the inspiration of their direction that
has come to us during the past nine
months has been in large measure the
reason for the expanding of the gospel
of Jesus Christ among the people of
Europe. We have been in almost con-
stant contact by telephone, by letter,

and by other means, with the inspiration
and direction of the First Presidency of
the Church. In standing here this after-
noon, I do so for and in behalf of the
thirteen mission presidents who are now
laboring in Europe, and I bring to this
conference their greetings, as well as to
the parents of their missionaries, and to
all who have served in these many mis-
sions of Europe.

These mission leaders are President
and Sister T. Bowring Woodbury of the
British Mission; President and Sister
Levi B. Thorup of the Danish Mission;
President and Sister John D. Warner of
the Finnish Mission; President and Sister
Edgar B. Brossard of the French Mission;
President and Sister J. Henry Volker of
the Netherlands Mission; President and
Sister Ray Engebretsen of the Norwegian
Mission; President and Sister Bernard
P. Brockbank of the North British Mis-
sion; President and Sister Percy K. Fetzer
of the North German Mission; President
and Sister A. Gideon Omer of the
Swedish Mission; President and Sister
William S. Erekson of the Swiss Mission;
and the new mission recently organized,
President and Sister W. Whitney Smith
of the Austrian Mission; President and
Sister T. Quentin Cannon of the South
German Mission; and President and
Sister Stephen C. Richards of the West
German Mission. And with them also
I bring the greetings of 1700 missionaries
who are now laboring in Europe. I am

happy to report that I have had the
opportunity during these past months
to look into their faces, to feel their
spirit, and once again to say within my
heart and to proclaim aloud that I have
confidence in the youth of this Church.

I am grateful to say that there is a
unification in the programs of our mis-
sionary work in Europe. Each and
every mission is pursuing the work of
proselyting in the same manner, and
the faith and the testimony of the mis-
sionaries who are carrying the gospel
to the peoples of these ancient lands
are in evidence. Presaged by the visits
made to Europe by President McKay
at the time of the temple dedications,
followed by other visits by members of
the Quorum of the Twelve and by Presi-
dent Moyle, the visit by Elder Harold
B. Lee at the time of the organization
of the Manchester Stake — these have
presaged an awakening among the peo-
ple of these ancient lands.

In August 1959 all of the European
missions combined were responsible for
ten percent of the converts of that month.
In the month of August of this year, the
European missions were responsible for
thirty-five percent of the converts of the
Church for that month, and I only re-
echo the faith and the testimony of the
mission presidents who are there when I
say that we haven't even scratched the
surface. God is touching the hearts of the
people, they are listening, and are receiv-

930

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

be in readiness.

But in the process of acquiring that
money, benefits would accrue which
would far exceed the monetary sums
that might be saved. If a young man
is saving consistently through his teen-
age years, and if his family is doing the
same, so that he can go out into mis-
sionary service, then that young man is
having instilled into his heart the de-
sire and the willingness to serve. It be-
comes part of his planning. He just
automatically assumes that he will dis-
charge part of his missionary obligation
by spending two or three years in the
mission field. He is impelled to live
right, to study and gain a knowledge of
the gospel, to keep himself morally
clean, to be worthy and qualified, so
that the inspiration will come to his
bishop to recommend him.

Now the second suggestion which I
make is this: We are supposed to be
holding regular family prayer in every
Latter-day Saint home. We do this
twice a day, ordinarily before the morn-
ing and the evening meals. The parents
set the example in family prayer. I think
perhaps we overlook the benefit and

value of family prayer in teaching the
doctrines of salvation to our children.
Well, if we as parents would regularly,
consistently, frequently (not every time
we pray, because we do not get into a
ritualistic rote where these things are
involved) but if frequently we would
plead with the Lord when we are mouth
in family prayer, that all of our young
men may go on missions when they get
to be the proper age, and that all of our
children, male and female alike, when
they get of the proper age, may be mar-
ried in the temple — if we would do this
we would soon find our young children,
just able themselves to speak, petition-
ing the Lord in the same language; they
would be praying that they might go on
missions, and that in due course, they
might be married in the temple. As a
consequence we would instil into their
hearts a desire, a willingness, a deter-
mination to go out and carry the mes-
sage and also a determination to be
married in that system out of which the
greatest blessings grow that it is possible
for any mortal individual to inherit.

We have an obligation. This is not
optional. We are not just to do it or

not if it is convenient. The Lord has
commanded us to carry his message to
the world and to be witnesses of his
name. If it takes some preparation and
schooling, if it takes some conditioning
and teaching in order to get ourselves in
a condition where we can do this effec-
tively, then in wisdom and in judgment
and in prudence we ought to undertake
the conditioning and make the prepara-
tion so that when the time comes we
will be financially able, and we will be
spiritually prepared to go forth on the
Lord's errand.

If I had to choose between the two, I
would rather have my sons go on mis-
sions than have a college education. It
will do more for them temporally and
educationally to say nothing of the
spiritual benefits that are involved.

The Lord said to some people in early
days what I think applies to us: ". . .
the thing which will be of the most
worth unto you will be to declare re-
pentance unto this people, that you may
bring souls unto me, that you may rest
with them in the kingdom of my
Father." (D&C 15:6.)

In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

ing answers to their desires and their
prayers. I only wish that I had the time
to tell of the many personal cases of con-
version that have come to these thousands
of people in the past year, and to reassure
you, my brethren and sisters, that these
people are converted to the gospel of
Jesus Christ. They have answered a
call that has come to them under the
power and the influence of the Spirit
of God. I have always felt in my heart
that when the Holy Ghost bears record
to anyone that he ought to do some-
thing about that, and we are encouraging
our missionaries in all of these lands to
be alert to the reaction of the power of
the Spirit in the minds and the hearts
of these people, and in that very moment
to persuade, to encourage, to teach, to
testify, and to challenge that they may
be willing to accept the gospel message
that has come to them.

I would be insensible to what is tak-
ing place in these ancient lands if I did
not say that we are witnessing the ful-
filling of a prophecy — a prophecy made
by President McKay at the time I was
called to go into the lands of Europe,
wherein he stated to me that the time
had come for the gospel of Jesus Christ
to be expanded in these lands. The peo-
ple are ready for the gospel, and we
are finding them responding to the ef-
forts of the missionaries as they bear
record by the power of faith and testi-
mony of the truths of the gospel unto

those with whom they make this contact.

One of the instructions that the First
Presidency gave to me was to go into all
of the lands of Europe, to go into every
mission, and I think it was President
Moyle who said to me that I might well
go to the French Mission first. We
heeded this counsel, and with my good
wife I went into the land of France and
in association with President and Sister
Brossard, spent some three weeks there
last February — a land where ninety-two
percent of the population belong to the
Catholic Church. We found our splen-
did missionaries responsive to motiva-
tion and a new method of contacting
the people and teaching them by the
power of the Spirit and testimony.

We labored in that land, and under
the inspiration of God the hearts of the
missionaries were touched, and I shall
never forget a meeting held in Brussels
at the close of the tour of that mission
with the missionary leaders, who went
from that meeting with such faith that
it engendered itself into the hearts of
every one of the missionaries. We said
to them, "We want you to go back to
the people you have been meeting with,
and where they have not listened to
you before, to bear your testimony to
them, and to do it with all the strength
and the power that you have." From
that day to this in that mission the Lord
has awakened in the hearts of many
hundreds the desire to receive the gospel

of Jesus Christ. For here in a land
rich with great cathedrals have come
over 600 converts to the Church already
this year, to meet in rented halls, but
who now are looking forward to the
time when they can associate with their
brethren and sisters in the erecting of
beautiful chapels to better serve the
needs of old and new members alike.

As of today there is not a single LDS
chapel in all of France, and anyone who
would question the faith of these people
who have come into the Church would
need only to be there and see the transi-
tion that they have made from cathedrals
of worship to halls on second and third
floors, and who now are laboring as
stated with our other Saints to help in
the erection of our own chapels. This
has been true in all of the missions of
Europe.

I think one of the greatest testimonies
that has come to me in these past
months has been the responsiveness of
the local members of the Church in
Europe, where we have nearly 60,000.
We transferred Church leadership to
these local members. While in Febru-
ary of this year there were nearly 600
of our full time missionaries engaged
in branch, district, and auxiliary activity,
today there are fewer than a hundred,
and it is the avowed determination of
these wonderful mission presidents to
see to it that local leaders be called in
these also. This accomplished two

DECEMBER I960

931

things: It has relieved the missionaries
that they can do more proselyting, and
it has strengthened the branches of the
Church in these countries.

Let me tell you of one example which
is typical. In the tour of the French
Mission, when we visited the city of
Nice, we had several missionaries there
all engaged in branch work. One was
the branch president, one was a coun-
selor, another a superintendent of Sunday
School, all were engaged. The thought
had been that local brethren were not
worthy or capable, but we sought out
and called the best man we had. That
afternoon we interviewed four or five of
the local elders, and with Brother Bros-
sard selected the one to be president of
the branch. We called in his wife and
asked her to support him. That night
we set him apart and others of the local
brethren into other positions thus reliev-
ing missionaries, and in the very next
month these missionaries baptized
twenty-one people, two of whom were
doctors, one an attorney, and the other
a schoolteacher.

The Nice Branch today is strong, and
since that meeting there have been ap-
proximately sixty people come into the
Church in that one branch, and they
are attending their meetings.

I stood on the street at Trondheim in
Norway where Elder John A. Widtsoe
lived and played as a boy, and who later
said that the day would come when
many of the people of that land would
accept the gospel, and we are witnessing
the continuing of this prophecy in that
land. We are seeing again the surge
of conversions in Great Britain — a land
that has seen more than 160,000 con-
verts to the Church. Why would it be
incredible that under the inspiration of
God there could be more of these won-
derful people accept the gospel and
come into the Church?

And in all of the lands of Europe
there have been men and women of
great strength and character that have
added to the stability of this Church,
and how grateful now to be there in
the midst of this new time of awaken-
ing that will see more than ten thou-
sand converts come into the Church in
these lands this year; and in consulta-
tion with my brethren, these mission
presidents, we feel that there is no end
to where we can go under the impetus
of the power of God as he reaches and
touches the hearts of the people.

These new converts are telling their
neighbors about the gospel. They are
letting their friends know about it. Let
me tell you of one typical case. When
I was in Denmark, I shook hands with
a good sister by the name of Dagmar
Petersen, who had been baptized a
month previously. She had heard the
gospel, but she said, "I am too old. All
of my family would turn against me. I
know Joseph Smith is a Prophet of God,

but I do not think I'd better take the
step."

But thank the Lord for a missionary
who had the courage to go to her one
day when there was a baptismal service
and say to her, "Sister Petersen, today is
the day of your baptism. The font is
filled. Will you come with me?" She
hesitated for a moment, then went with
the missionaries, walking the six or
seven blocks to our beautiful little chapel
and was there baptized.

In this conference meeting she sat
with one neighbor on one side and two
neighbors on the other side of her. The
one on the one side already had been
baptized, and the other two were to be

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

BY JANE MERCHANT

I read each letter through with eager
haste

As soon as it's received, then re-read
slowly

With deep enjoyment, savoring the
taste

Of piquant phrases; giving myself
wholly

To all events described, as being
there;

And pondering suggestions and opin-
ions

That breathe a wider and a clearer
air

Than my familiar everyday domin-
ions—

But linger longest, vain though it
may be,

On every word of love and praise
for me.

baptized the following Saturday, and
she said, "I will never be happy until
all my friends and all my neighbors
have been baptized," and this wonder-
ful soul left the chapel and then came
back. She said, after entering the chapel
again, "I cannot leave, the spirit is so
great in this building. I must shake
hands again," and then she went off
down the street with her friends.

Every Latter-day Saint desires to be a
missionary. I think that this is in the
heart of almost every member; but why
is it, my brethren and my sisters, that
we are so afraid to bear our testimonies
to our neighbors? I think it was the
Apostle Paul who said this:

"For though I preach the gospel, I
have nothing to glory of: for necessity is
laid upon me; yea, woe is unto me, if
I preach not the gospel!" (1 Cor. 9:16.)

Then another great prophet of Israel
has said this: "So thou, O son of man,

I have set thee a watchman unto the
house of Israel; therefore thou shalt
hear the word at my mouth, and warn
them from me.

"When I say unto the wicked . . .
thou shalt surely die; and if thou dost not
speak to warn the wicked from his way,
that wicked man shall die in his
iniquity; but his blood will I require
at thy hand.

"Nevertheless, if thou warn the wicked
of his way to turn from it; if he do not
turn from his way, he shall die in his
iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy
soul." (Ezek. 33:7-9.)

I have often said to the Latter-day
Saints, "If you cannot be a missionary,
then at least be a Latter-day Saint, that
you will not stand in the way by your
manner of living, of those who will
want to come into the Church."

Now there are many wonderful things
going on in Europe. Under the inspira-
tion of the Lord we have called thirty-
four translators in the various countries.
I wish I could tell you the story of
each one, like Sister Charrier down in a
little village in France. She heard the
gospel, accepted it. We learned that
she had a class of pupils whom she was
teaching English. Her preparations
have enabled her to help us with the
translations into the French language.
And she now is working diligently.

I am thinking of Immo Luschin Eben-
greuth of Graz, Austria, a man who
heard the gospel message from two
missionaries, and said to them before
they got into a lengthy discussion on
the gospel, "I would ask you only five
questions before you go further." He was
a confirmed member of the Catholic
Church, and these are his questions:

"1. Does this Church believe in mar-
riage for all eternity?

"2. Does this Church believe in the
punishment for infants who are not
baptized?

"3. Do, in this Church, the rich and
the poor have equal opportunity?

"4. In this Church, do you baptize by
immersion for the remission of sin?

"5. In this Church do you lay on
hands for the receiving of the Holy
Ghost?"

This man had never met the mission-
aries before, and we inquired as to where
he got such questions. His answer was,
"We have not been satisfied with our
faith. My wife and I determined that
through prayer and the desire to know
that we would find out the true Church."
The missionaries said, "Why, these are
our teachings," and thus Brother Eben-
greuth was baptized with his wife. This
brother is a skilled interpreter. He speaks
English, I am confident, better than I
do, and he now will become a translator
for the Church of the German language.

This has been how the Lord has

opened the way for us, so that by the

end of this year nearly one hundred

(Continued on page 933)

932

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

The

Era of Youth

DECEMBER 1960

Marion D. Hanks, Editor;
Elaine Cannon, Associate Editor

allowed,

wholesome,
gracioi

oles<

ONIGHT, not one alone am I, but three —
The Lad I was, the Man I am, and he
Who looks adown the coming future years
And wonders at my sloth. His hopes and fears
Should goad me to the manly game
Of adding to the honor of my name.
I'm Fate to him —that chap that's I, grown old.
No matter how much stocks and land and gold
I save for him, he can't buy back a single day
On which I built a pattern for his way.

I, in turn, am product of that Boy

Who rarely thought of After Selves. His joy

Was in the present. He might have saved me woe

Had he but thought. The ways that I must go

Are his. He marked them all for me ^

And I must follow — and so must he —

My Future Self — Unless I save him!

Save? — Somehow that word,
Deep down, a precious thought has stirred
Savior? — Yes, I'm savior to that "Me."
That thoughtful After Person whom I see! —
The thought is staggering! I sit and gaze
At my two Other Selves, joint keepers of my days!

Master of Christmas. You dared to bleed and die

That others might find life. How much more I

Should willingly give up my present days

To lofty deeds; seek out the ways

To build a splendid life. I should not fail

To set my feet upon the star-bound trail

For him — that After Self. You said that he

Who'd lose his life should find it, and I know

You found a larger life, still live and grow.

Your doctrine was, so I've been told, serve man.

I wonder if I'm doing all I can

To serve? Will serving help that Older Me

To be the man he'd fondly like to be?

Last night I passed a shack
Where hunger lurked. I must go back
And take a lamb. Is that the message of the Star
Whose rays, please God, can shine this far?

Tonight, not one alone am I, but three — c

The Lad I was, the Man I am, and he

Who is my Future Self — nay, more:

I am His savior — that thought makes me four!

Master of Christmas, that Star of Thine shines clear
Bless Thou the four of me — out here!

Sotm^ Eve m the DEgEj^T

Harrison R. Merrill

FORMER MANAGING EDITOR, THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

One of the most wonderful things about
Christmas is the spirit that fills the air with
helpfulness and friendliness and kindness,
and overcomes differences and makes men
act like brothers..

It happened at the first Christmas. There
were rich people and poor people there, edu-
cated and uneducated, obscure and promi-
nent. There were shepherds, tradesmen,
stableboys, wise men, and angels. The spirit
of that holy day brought them together in
brotherhood.

Something else very wonderful occurred
on that sacred occasion: God's gift of his
Beloved Son touched everyone round about.

The spirit of Christmas still makes us
want to give, but some think they have little
or nothing important to share. What do we
have that we can give? What does the
Lord want us to give?

In chapter 58 of Isaiah in the Old Testa-
ment, and chapter 25 of Matthew in the New
Testament, we read of some precious things
that every one of us has to give, if we will.

The Lord speaks of the hungry and thirsty
and those who need clothing and invites us
to "deal thy bread to the hungry," and "when
thou seest the naked : cover him." He wants
us to share the material things we have, and
there is great need for this and great joy in
it. But there is more than this. The poor-
est and humblest of us has gifts he can share.

Think of these suggestions from the Bible:
". . . SATISFY THE AFFLICTED SOUL .. »

Are not loneliness and hopelessness afflic-
tions of the most grievous kind? Each of us
can help to satisfy this need. We can offer
friendship, interest, sympathy. We can visit
the sick and those who are alone. There are
some who, more than anything else, would
appreciate the gift of thoughtfidness and
attention, of compassion and a little time.
". . . BRING THE POOR THAT ARE CAST
OUT TO THY HOUSE . . ."

One of the happiest Christmases we ever
had at our house (and the most joy to re-
member) was when a stranger in need was
brought in to share our holidays. She com-
plicated things a little and was a little
"bother," but what joy she gave our children
in accepting their love and affection ! There
are so many who are "poor" for lack of kind-
ness; is there anyone who has none of this to
share?

". . . UNDO THE HEAVY BURDENS . . .
LET THE OPPRESSED GO FREE . . ."

Many who suffer from disappointments
and separations and sorrow need nothing so
much as encouragement and cheer. A
prominent man once had a serious personal
setback, and after a night of severe depres-
sion and distress, sat by his window as the
sun rose, not knowing where to turn, heart-
sick and afraid. He heard a cheerful whistle
and saw a figure passing by his window —
the twisted figure of an old friend, a choice
friend now tortured by the crippling effects
of a tragic accident, a man who lacked many
of the material things and advantages the
watcher had. He turned from the window

ashamed, but comforted and strengthened
and resolute.

Who can gauge the worth of a gift of
cheerfulness or encouragement?
". . . BREAK EVERY YOKE . . . LOOSE
THE BANDS OF WICKEDNESS "

The world suffers more for want of truth,
knowledge, faith, than for want of bread.
Have you a friend who lacks faith, who needs
to know the program and promise of repent-
ance? Pride, stubbornness, ignorance, un-
belief, sin are terrible yokes for God's
children to wear. Would a book or a letter
or a word from you — a word of faith, testi-
mony, love, confidence, be a valuable gift to
them? Have you this to share? and the
courage to do it?

Is there someone who has injured you
and labors under the terrible burden of guilt
and bad conscience? Would forgiveness be
a good gift for him and for you ?
". . . HIDE NOT THYSELF FROM THINE
OWN FLESH . . ."

A great man once said that young people
should "not join a lot of gangs." "Join the
United States," he said, "and join the fam-
ily." There are those who love you best and
who have done most for you who could not
receive a more cherished gift from you than
to know that you love them and appreciate
them. If you've been "away," maybe, even
living under the same roof in the same town,
why not "join the family" for Christmas.

At the first Christmas, each gave what he
had to the Lord. Whatever gifts you may
have been thinking about giving, will you
consider how important it could be to others
if you were to give yourself for Christmas?

MARION D. HANKS

Surprise
packages could
very well prove
to be the most
of the holidays, not on!
for you but also for those on
receiving end of your bright ideas.
There is nothing as special as
being unexpectedly appreciated and *
beloved. And a gift from you, out
of the blue, can stir up just that
kind of Christmas spirit. One of
the surest, nicest clues that you
are now quite grown up happens
around Christmas when you dis-
cover a change in your feeling
about presents. You realize that it
-rf-'A really is better to give than to
sV\| receive and that plotting pleasure
)\^ in the form of a surprise package for

someone you might not ordinarily remem-
ber with a gift is a delight. fiThe objective of
such behavior is to give joy with no strings attached.
The package needn't be a mighty one, just something gay,
happily chosen ... a bit of greenery in a decorative mug ; a
novel pin-cushion; a bundle of twist candy, ribbon tied and
spriged ; a pocket-book classic. \ On your list might be the young-
ster with whom you baby-sit; the local librarian; your MIA
president or superintendent; the parent who has taxied your
crowd hither and yon; the new girl down the street;
the fellow who pulled you through geometry;
perhaps even a member of your own family!
Whoever and whatever is for you to
decide, but the outcome promises
to put the surprise back
into Christmas
morning.

There's a glow about Christmas . . . from the fire

on the hearth to the light on the porch where you
carol . . . from the candles on the mantle and

the baubles on the tree that everybody helps
trim . . . from sparkling silver on the party table, and
foil paper around piles of gifts . . .

from the star over the creche and the lamp in the
window . . . from polished apples and sequined socks

and shimmering frocks. O there's a glow about
Christmas, all right, and it's reflected in the bright
eyes and shining faces of lots of people doing lots of
things in a very festive manner.

ELAINE CANNON

Jesus Christ has influenced my life by bringing me
joy and faith and peace of mind. When everyday prob-
lems discourage me and make me feel confused and
frustrated, prayer and thinking of my wonderful bless-
ings help me overcome the depressed feeling. My life
is enlightened, and I can see the many beautiful

things of life.

Use Foerster

Jesus died that man might be saved. But man
cannot be saved in ignorance. Knowledge will come
from reading, praying, attending meetings, and listen-
ing to those who take time to help us in understand-
ing the gospel, and from obeying his commandments.
To try hard at all times to remember his command-
ments and live them brings happiness and peace of
mind. I know that my Redeemer lives.

Mercy Johnson

Christ has influenced my life in a truly convincing
way. He has helped me to want to develop an attitude
which will lead me in a straight path of faith in God
and obedience to his will. I am thankful that Christ
has helped me gain an outlook on life which, with
sincere and humble application, will bring me each
day closer to that great and glorious goal — eternal life
with him.

Doug Bowers

What I think

I have a deep feeling regarding Jesus Christ. It is
hard to express in words, but I know that the way I
direct my life will show how I really feel. I accept
Christ as my Savior and Creator. I know that he lives.
Without this faith in Christ, life to me would be un-
meaningful and empty. But because of him and his
mission, not only for me but also for all mankind, I
know where I came from, I know why I am here, and
I am trying to live in such a way as to assure true
happiness when this life is through.

Keith Hafen

I know that the babe of Bethlehem whose birth
was announced by angels was and is the only Begot-
ten Son of God the Eternal Father. As a man, he
walked the dusty roads of Palestine healing the sick,
blessing the poor, and consoling the mournful. I know
that he was chosen to come down on earth to be a
Savior to the children of God. He died that we might
have everlasting life. He suffered for us when he
could have saved himself.

What does this testimony do for me? It gives me
the realization that I owe my very life to the furthering
of God's kingdom. It shows me that now is the time
for me to be obedient to the commandments, to study
the scriptures, and to love God and devote my life to
his service.

Mark Parkinson

One of my most priceless possessions is
the knowledge I have that Jesus is the Christ,
the literal Son of God. This testimony is the
anchor of my soul. An explanation of why I
can bear this witness is difficult. A testimony
isn't tangible, but it is, nevertheless, real. Love,
one of the most beautiful of human emotions,
is also intangible, but who will deny its exist-
ence? The testimony of the Spirit is sure!
Christ said, "But when the Comforter is come,
. . . even the Spirit of Truth, he shall testify
of me. And ye also shall bear witness." (John
15:26-27.) Jesus Christ was more than an ex-
pert teacher, more than a philosopher or
prophet, and yes, even more than a perfect
man, he was and is the same Personage who
declared to Moses, "I am the Lord thy God."

(Exodus 20:2.) :. n

C. Gary Bennett

To me, Jesus stands for everything that is
good, clean, and wholesome; he is my guiding
star. Christ means perfection to me — perfec-
tion in everything he did and said- Through
him I may experience eternal life, and with it
marriage for time and all eternity, if I choose.

Diana Ovard

To me, Christ means a great deal. My
whole life is planned around the love and wis-
dom he has taught me. He is my salvation and
hope; my joy and sorrow, and through his
atonement I know that death has no sting and
we shall live again. Faye E|ton

Everyone must believe in something. It is
fortunate to be born into a Christian family,
but just being born into a Christian family is
not enough. The truths of Christianity have to
be rediscovered by each individual. This dis-
covery is only made by study, prayer, and
analytical observation of the effects of these
Christian truths upon individuals and nations.
I have a fervent testimony that the Bible is
true, and, as the Bible states, that Jesus is
the Christ, the Son of God. I believe that
through the Holy Ghost, God will give truth to
every person as he seeks for it. I believe that
the most important knowledge is that which
draws one to the Christ. All else is secondary.
I know that God lives, and it is my earnest
desire to live a clean, pure life here on earth
so that one day I may be able to live with him
in eternity.

Hannah Sohn

Mormon teens

give their views

I believe in the greatness of the man called
Jesus of Nazareth. He was a remarkable
teacher. His teachings w.ere wise and good. I
believe his words when he said, "Peace I leave
with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the
world giveth, give I unto you." (John 14:27.)
Who but a God could promise this? Jesus
Christ, Son o?a' heavenly Father and an earthly
mother, spoke with authority. I accept him as
a great teache'r; I know him as my Redeemer.
In him my needs are fulfilled, my questions
are answered.

Donna Sterzer

I know that our Father in heaven does live
and is our source of strength and eternal ex-
altation; and that his Son Jesus Christ gave
his life for us that we might be redeemed from
the fall which resulted from the transgression
of Adam. I also know that Christ was resur-
rected and lives. I have gained a testimony
through study and observation and' through
answers to my prayers. Through knowledge of
life, faith, and prayer, I know that God and

Jesus Christ do live.

Shirley Ward

Some say Christ is a spirit. Some believe
that he is the Father, Son and Holy Ghost — all
in one. But I know that Jesus Christ is a per-
son of body, parts, and passions, and is a
separate and distinct being from his Father
and the Holy Ghost. I know that through Jesus
Christ the plan of salvation was made possible
for everyone. I love him for what he did for me.

Ida Jean Taylor

I believe that Jesus Christ was a mighty
and wonderful teacher and a man of great
moral strength. I believe, also, that he is the
Son of God, the Savior of the world, and the
only perfect being ever to live upon this earth.
I believe that because he was willing to die for
us, we may be saved in eternity, through our
faith and by living the commandments of God.
I have a testimony that Christ appeared on
this, the American continent, and gave God's
word to the people living here. I believe that
if we humbly pray with "a sincere heart, with
real intent, having faith in Christ," our prayers
will be answered, and we "may know the truth
of all things." (Moroni 10:4-5.)

Janette Slagowski

BY WINNIFRED JARDINE

Since cookies go with Christmas, why not make them to give to everybody on

your list? Mom will melt over a heart-shaped cookie of love. Dad will think a golf bag

with clubs (cookies, of course) as good as the real thing. For special friends,

create huge cookie records centered with "labels" of chocolate icing.

For an extra share of Christmas spirit treat the children in hospitals to a box of drums

and boats, dolls and doll houses, all baked from dough by you. To hang from your

tree, make Christmas angels and stars and stockings, and delight young visitors by

letting them choose one. Elderly aunts and uncles will know for sure

that there's a Santa if a teen walks in with a box of Santa cookies.

For them, being remembered by young folks is a special Christmas

miracle all in itself ! Coloring book sketches make perfect patterns. Lay them

on sugar cookie dough and trace them with a sharp knife.

Use toothpicks and cake decorator tubes for detail work on the icing.

Your first cookies will be hilarious fun — and maybe funny — but

enjoyable to all. The more you make, the better you become. This could

become a traditional Christmas hobby — merry, indeed, for you

and a joy to those with whom you share.

CHRISTMAS TRADITION . . . because little
children suggested it, we know at least one
family where the birthday of the Christ Child
is celebrated with a huge white angel cake,
frosted candle bedecked, and sweetly shared
by all the family before gifts are opened.

PROPER PARTY . . . round op your favorite
friends, set the mood with carols played low in
the background and take turns reading Dickens7
"Christmas Carol" aloud. Or make it the Gospel
according to Luke. Could be the nicest evening
of the season.

mR&A.

BIRD TREE . . . (with thanks to Peter
Marshall's wife, Catherine, for this idea) help
the small fry in your house decorate a Christ-
mas tree for the birds in your yard. Use a
live evergreen or put a small one in sand near
a window, where family members can watch
it. Decorate with bits of colored yarn, bacon,
nuts, popcorn, cranberries, and apple slices.

PARTY PROPS . . . pillows, puffy and
fat, giddy and gay, but mighty useful
for the BIG gathering of the holidays.
Help your hostess by toting your own,
made-by-you from felt, corduroy, fur-
fabric, burlap. This way there is al-
ways someplace to sit !

FESTIVE FOLK . . . and Christmas sprites brighten-
ing up this issue are Katie Stohl, Roger Daly, Jerry
Rock wood, Ala urine Aiafheson, of Highland Park
Stake; Dave Peterson, Karen Greenhalgh, Paul
Clark, Arthur Howard, Dale and David Brown,
Dave Peterson and Craig Larson of Parley's Stake;
Sandy Burke, Hillside Stake.

BY SHIRLEY GRAFF,
MCCALL'S PATTERNS'
EDUCATIONAL REPRESENTATIVE

eoMEg

but talent, too often hidden, lurks in all of us
the year round. What better time than
Christmas, a time of loving and sharing, to
use this untapped talent in making the gift
you give. Here are a few suggestions to keep
hands flying, imaginations soaring, to express
your personality in a tangible creative way.

Boodle bag for books, gifts, or games.
Carry it, hang it, give it to a nice looking
Explorer and let him carry your books. Five
other fun ideas too.
2411, 28" deep.

Busy Beehives, please note.

The sleek slipper to wear with slacks,

a stroll with Prince Valiant, a New

Year's brunch.

2378, s,m,l.

Gay holiday apron for Mia Maids and their
mothers. Add harmonizing note with pom-
pons of another color.
2406.

A dazzling way to test your creative skill.
With pearls and binding trim, turn a sweater
into an evening cardigan. Recommended for
Laurels and Gleaners or someone who's
planning a gift for them.
2420, 50c.

Smart cookies cook with mitts and save
their hands for looking pretty. Other towels
and perky pot holders to bring out the
homemaker in you.
2362.

textbooks and manuals combined in six
languages will have been translated.
This has been a tremendous task and
could not have been done without the
help of the Lord.

There is a wide program of micro-
filming going on in Europe. This is
better known by others than myself,
although I have kept an eye on it, and
have had some indirect connection with
it. I have seen the advantages to this
work from heeding the counsel of the
brethren. They instructed me to meet
the ambassadors, the leaders of nations,
and this has been my purpose, and in
each and every country have I taken
the time to meet these men when I
could.

In Norway when the head bishop of
the state church carried a personal cam-
paign to the press and elsewhere to
prevent us from microfilming in that
land, and succeeded also in getting it
before the Parliament and when it ap-
peared as though we might lose these
privileges, the Minister of Education of
the country of Norway, who is also the
Minister of Religious Instruction, rose to
his feet and said, "You cannot stop the
Mormon people from doing this work."
He said, "I have been to Salt Lake City. I
have met these people. I know what they
do with these films," and he made a de-
fense for us largely because of the asso-
ciation that had been had with him
here and in the land of Norway, and
even the head bishop of the state church
had to acknowledge defeat in his effort
to prevent us from continuing with this
work.

And so the Lord is watching over the
things that are being done. I am most
grateful, my brethren and sisters, to
report to you that these wonderful mem-
bers in the lands of Europe are substan-
tially true to the gospel of Jesus Christ.
I have witnessed in their youth confer-
ences their adherence to our Church
customs and patterns and how they re-
vere the ideals and the standards which
have been set for them by our general
youth organizations. I have been near
to their Relief Society meetings and
have seen how the influence of our
Relief Society organization finds its way
into their thinking, and they have a de-
sire to do the will of the Lord. I do
not know to what extent we may go in
these lands when they have the instru-
mentation and the facility of proper
buildings which they do not have now.

I want to say to President McKay and
President Clark and President Moyle and
the brethren how grateful these people
are for the coming building program
that will see many chapels go up in
places where they are so sorely needed
to further the Church program and
which also will provide greater tools of
missionary work to carry on this great
responsibility given to us as a Church
to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ
unto the people.

Let me tell you just briefly of my two
visits behind the Iron Curtain to be in
attendance with the Saints at Leipzig
where other of our brethren have been.
These members live under hardened
conditions. I said to one brother, "How
do you stand it here?" He said, "We
learn to follow the paths and the trails
that are laid out for us. We learn to
do what we are told, then we have no
difficulty. Our children are picked up
in the morning by bus at 8 a.m. and
are delivered home at night. We have
no control over their schooling nor over
what is taught them: referred to by
Brother Buehner in the morning session.
I was greatly moved to hear the testi-
monies of our members there.

One of the district presidents testified
what to me is the greatest testimony I

SILVER WEDDING

BY ETHEL JACOBSON

Twenty-five years— and still going

strong!
Twenty-five years doesn't seem long
From "groom" to "Grandpa," willing

to share;
From "bride" to "Granny." (Who said

"gray hair"?
Just make it silver, softly shining
To match every cloudlet's burnished

lining.)
When twenty-five years have been

mostly sun,
A sharing of dreams, of faith, of fun,
Here's twenty-five more for serenely

treading
The shining path to— a golden

wedding.

have heard in Europe: Under such con-
ditions "no man," said he, "can tell me
how to worship God in my own heart.
Although there are nearly five thousand
members in some thirty-nine branches
we keep in contact with them as much
as we can." I thought as we enjoyed
this wonderful presentation of music
here today, that but a few weeks ago, I
listened to a combined chorus of the
Leipzig and Dresden districts sing, "Shall
the Youth of Zion Falter." The look
on the faces of these young people was
most stirring. All that day in our priest-
hood and leadership meetings, we gave
encouragement to safeguard to the full-
est extent possible our youth to cause
them to remain true to the gospel be-
cause there are inroads being made.
How grateful Sister Dyer and I have

been to be associated with these people
and with our wonderful missionaries,
who with clear faces are bearing their
testimonies to the peoples of Europe,
and who are receiving these wonderful
responses, and I know with all my heart
that all this is but the fulfilment of
prophecy.

I bear you my testimony in all humil-
ity that this is the work of God. I have
seen it in the lives of people. I have
witnessed it as it causes men and women
to change their lives, I have seen it
become a motivating force for good, and
I bear record that Jesus Christ is the
Son of God, the Redeemer of the world,
the Mediator — not as it is preached by
these predominant countries of the lands
of Europe. And do you know that this
is the message we declare when we go
to the doors of the people the first time?
It is through the testimony of our mis-
sionaries that the veneer of false con-
cepts and the antiquities of these peo-
ple are being laid aside for the acceptance
of the gospel. It is more powerful than
all other things that we do in our
missionary work as we look into their
faces and bear record that God has
raised up a prophet, and they are lis-
tening to this message.

We had a family of seven visited
recently by the missionaries where the
woman was about to close the door
when the elder said, "I can see you are
going to close the door. I am very sorry.
We have such a wonderful message,"
and we have told them, "Before any door
is closed, you bear your testimony." He
said, "Before you close that door I want
to bear my testimony to you of these
brief things we have stated today," and
he bore his testimony. The door closed,
and the missionaries started for their
home to their room, and it was raining.
They had reached about a half a block
when they heard a voice, it was the
young boy of the home, fourteen-years-
old, who said, "Dad wants you to come
back," and they went back and the
father said, "I listened to your message
at the door on the other side as you
spoke to my wife, and I did not think
much of it until that young man bore
his testimony, and then something came
over me that I have never experienced
before, and now I have to know what
this is."

I had the privilege of shaking hands
with this family of seven and hearing
them testify that God had made known
to them that these things are true. This
is the reason why so many are accepting
the gospel in the lands of Europe. We
are proclaiming the message by testi-
mony and through the Spirit.

I ask the blessings of our Heavenly
Father upon the great missionary work
and upon our beloved brethren who
lead us, without whose inspiration and
direction we could not go forward in
these lands and throughout the world,
I pray in Jesus' name. Amen.

DECEMBER 1960

933

LOOK TO
OUR YOUNG
MEN

Thorpe B. Isaacson
of the Presiding Bishopric

President McKay, President Moyle,
President Smith, my dear brothers and
sisters, I will be very grateful to you for
an _ interest in your faith and prayers
while I attempt to speak to you. I have
long since come to realize that in and
of myself there is very little that I can
do. Therefore, I shall be dependent
greatly upon the Spirit of the Lord.

I would like to pay tribute to these
nearly eight thousand missionaries who
came from the ranks of the Aaronic
Priesthood. Many of them just a few
years ago were little deacons, teachers,
and priests, and now are in all parts of
the world preaching the gospel. I
should also like to pay tribute to their
parents and their families, many of them
come from very modest homes.

Since the missionary system of the
Church was first inaugurated, it is esti-
mated, and it is only an estimation,
that there may have been approximately
one hundred thousand missionaries sent
into all parts of the world. The mis-
sionary system has undoubtedly been a
source of tremendous strength to the
Church throughout its fascinating his-
tory. Many of us here today could
trace our very presence, yes, our very
membership in the Church, to the work
of some wonderful missionary. And in
a hundred years from now, when none
of us are here, there will probably be
millions who will be able to trace their
membership in the Church to the work
of some wonderful missionary.

We often interview these young men,
and we talk to them about going on a
mission. One of the questions that we
ask them is, "Do you want to go on this
mission or are you going because some-
one else has urged you to go?" Invariably
we get a very strong answer to the
effect, "Yes, I want to go on this mis-
sion. I have been planning on it for
many years since a small boy."

Sometimes we ask them, "Who will
finance you on this mission?" And we
get some wonderful answers. A number
of them say that they have been saving
money themselves, as Brother McConkie

suggested this morning, getting ready for
this mission. Some say, "Well, I have
been in the service" — and it is not un-
usual to find a wonderful boy returning
from the service to say, "I have saved
my money while I have been in the
service in the hope that I could go on a
mission."

A number of them say, "I am glad to
sell my car that I have bought, and
together with other funds, I am ready
to go on a mission."

Of course, the majority of them tell
us that their parents will sustain them
while they are in the mission field. But
many occasionally say that some good
friend or some neighbor or relative
wants the privilege of helping them
while on a mission. Others say their
quorum is anxious to help them. These
young men feel that it is a great bless-
ing to go on a mission; it is not a
burden. They do not look at it as a
burden, neither do they look at it as a
sacrifice. Truly these young men are
blessed and magnified. We must realize
that before they left for their mission,
every one of them had hands laid upon
their heads by servants of the Lord,
who gave them a blessing and set them
apart as missionaries.

Sometimes we ask a prospective mis-
sionary, "Do you have a testimony of
the gospel?" And the young man will
look at you and say, "Yes, I have a testi-
mony. It may not be as strong as I hope
it will be in later years, but I have a
testimony."

And then we may ask the prospective
missionary, "Do you know that Joseph
Smith was a prophet of God?" And it
is always a thrill to see a young man
look up and say, "Yes, sir! I know that
Joseph Smith was a prophet!" "Do you
know that President David O. McKay
is a prophet?" "Yes, sir!" He looks at
you and says, "I know that President
David O. McKay is a prophet of the
Lord!"

Then we may ask these prospective
missionaries, "Is there anything in this
world that could change you? Is there
anyone who could change your mind
or change your testimony?" They will
look at you and say, "No, there is not
anything in this world that could change
my mind, because I know that Joseph
Smith was a prophet of God, and I
know that President David O. McKay
is a prophet." And they do know it.

How do they know it? They know it
by the power and the gift of the Holy
Ghost that testifies to them that it is so.
They speak as did the Prophet Joseph
when describing his great vision of the
Father and the Son:

"I had actually seen a light, and in
the midst of that light I saw two Per-
sonages, and they did in reality speak to
me; and though I was hated and perse-
cuted for saying that I had seen a vision,
yet it was true; and while they were
persecuting me, reviling me, and speak-

ing all manner of evil against me falsely
for so saying, I was led to say in my
heart: Why persecute me for telling the
truth? I have actually seen a vision;
and who am I that I can withstand God,
or why does the world think to make me
deny what I have actually seen? For I
had seen a vision; I knew it, and I knew
that God knew it, and I could not deny
it, neither dared I do it; at least I knew
that by so doing I would offend God, and
come under condemnation." (Joseph
Smith, 2:25.)

On many occasions, young men have
volunteered to me, when I have asked
them, if there are any circumstances or
teacher who might change their testi-
mony, and they have spoken very strong-
ly and said, "I would rather die than
deny that Joseph Smith was a prophet
of God!"

Do you worry about that kind of
young men? No, no! In years to come
we will see the strength of those great
young men.

Recently I was told the story of a
wonderful physician and surgeon. A
few years ago while he was serving in
the army, and at that time he was not
a member of the Church, he met two
or three of our young Mormon mission-
aries. He did not know them at the
time, and he spoke somewhat disre-
spectfully to them. One of these young
men, very composed, spoke up frankly
to this doctor and told him who they
were and what they were doing. The
doctor listened, and he said he was very
chagrined and ashamed because of the
way he had spoken to them. The doctor
soon learned to admire these young men,
and he listened to them.

He went home, and he told his wife
about these exceptional young men. He
told her some of the things that they
had told him. True, these were not
learned men of science, they were not
even men with great experience. But he
learned a great deal from these young
Mormon missionaries, and he soon recog-
nized that while they were not men of
science, they were men of God. He
learned to listen to them, and it was not
long before both he and his wife joined
the Church and are very wonderful
members of the Church today.

This fine doctor often thanks the Lord
for these wonderful Mormon mission-
aries, because you see, now this doctor
has six or seven sons of his own, and
he often reminds them that he wants
them to be like the fine Mormon mis-
sionaries whom he met years ago, and
who were responsible for teaching him
the gospel and bringing him and his
wife into the Church.

Our missionaries are ever receiving,
and in this they are blessed, but more
important, they are ever giving. They
receive not to hold for themselves, but
to give to others. In receiving, they are
like the Sea of Galilee and the Dead
Sea in Palestine. In giving, they are

934

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

like the Sea of Galilee only, which re-
ceives and gives, while the Dead Sea
receives only to hold to itself, and it gives
nothing. The vast difference between
receiving and giving and only receiving
is appropriately described in the follow-
ing word picture of the two seas of the
Holy Land, and I think each of us should
now resolve to be like the Sea of Galilee:

"One is fresh and fish abound in it.
Splashes of green adorn its landscape.
Trees spread their branches over it and
stretch out their thirsty roots to sip of
its life-giving waters. Along its shores
children play, as children played when
He was there. He loved it. He could
look across its silver surface as He spoke
His parables. And on a rolling plain,
not far away, He fed five thousand peo-
ple in the miracle of the loaves and
fishes. The River Jordan forms this Sea
with sparkling waters from the hills. It
laughs in the sunshine, and men build
their houses near it, and birds their
nests, and every kind of life is happier
because it is there. The River Jordan
flows on south into another Sea. Here
there is no splash of fish, no fluttering
leaf, no song of birds, no laughter of little
children. Travelers do not pass, unless
on urgent business which might take
them there. The air hangs heavy above
its waters, and neither man nor beast
nor fowl will drink of it. What makes
this mighty difference in these neighbor
Seas? Not the River Jordan — It empties
the same good water into both. Not the
soil in which they lie, nor the country
'round about. The Sea of Galilee re-
ceives and gives but does not keep the
Jordan water to itself. For every drop
which flows into it, another drop flows
out. The receiving and the giving go
on, day after day, in equal measure.
The other Sea hoards its income jeal-
ously. Every drop it gets, it keeps. The
Sea of Galilee gives and lives. The
other Sea gives nothing. It is named
'The Dead Sea.'" (Bruce Barton.)

With this comparison between receiv-
ing and giving, it is easy to see what
the great missionary program can do
for your young men, for they forsake all
selfishness, and they turn to the divine
art of selflessness, as they seek to give
only that they may have a richer store
from which to give for the blessing of
others.

Yes, we think that every deacon,
teacher, and priest of the Aaronic Priest-
hood should prepare to fill a mission.
These choice young men should have
proper training. Last year we presented
over 31,000 individual Aaronic Priest-
hood awards to very choice, wonderful
young men, which means that every one
of these young, outstanding men is a
potential missionary, if we as parents
and leaders do our part.

These young men are preparing for
that mission. Parents and Aaronic
Priesthood leaders would do well to
hold as the goal for every Aaronic Priest-

hood boy the preparation for a mission.
For seven years — two years as a deacon,
two years as a teacher, and three years
as a priest — the courses of study, we
hope, will be prepared and so correlated
that at the end of these seven years, all
of these wonderful Aaronic Priesthood
boys will have reached that goal of
being prepared to fill a mission. And
during these seven years' experience in
the Aaronic Priesthood program, the boy
will be given a training that will carry
him not alone through a mission, but
throughout his life.

We know there are some young men
who may be on the wrong road. We
would say to you young men, "Turn
back. Turn back; it isn't too late. We
want to help you. You can still find the
right road. We want you to know that
the Lord loves you young men. We
want you to know and appreciate what

is in store for you. We want you to feel
that the gospel of Jesus Christ is the
greatest stabilizing influence in your
life."

I want to bear you my testimony that
I know that God lives. I love the Lord.
I want to bear testimony to you that we
can get close to the Lord, perhaps closer
than we ourselves may fully realize, but
it will take humility; it will take effort,
and we cannot be satisfied just to go
on the road of least resistance. Let us
make sure that these thousands of Aaron-
ic Priesthood boys are not neglected.
What a shame it would be if we failed
to give every boy proper encouragement,
training, planning, or if we did any-
thing that would deny any one of these
boys receiving a call for his mission.

God bless us that we may live up to
the responsibilities which are ours, I
pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

THE

SPOKEN

WORD

Loved ones gone . . . and loved
ones living . . .

RICHARD L. EVANS

"Each departed friend," wrote one eminent observer,
"is a magnet that attracts us to the next world."1
It is true that our interest becomes divided, as those
we love leave us. Some things hold us here, and
some things pull us away. And always and ever
we live with memories, with remembrance— always with some of
the same questions, the same searching for assurance of the ever-
lastingness of life. There is this to be said, aside from all other
assurances: that no loving Father would plan, in his providence,
that we should learn so much of life and learn so much to love,
only to let us lose both life and those whom most we love. Life
is its own evidence of plan and purpose. And everlasting life is
no more a miracle, no less possible, no less real than this life we
live. And to those who mourn and those who remember, we would
reaffirm the faith, indeed, the solid assurance that personality and
truth and intelligence are perpetuated, and that memories are not
only for the past, not only for the present, but also for the future—
not only for what was, but also for what will yet be. All reason
supports the everlastingness of life, as well as the assurance that
God has given. And now may we turn for a moment from memories
and remembrance to a present look at life: Besides remembering
memories, may we, please God, come closer to those who are with
us yet. The line of life, the line between time and eternity, is a
thin line of no certain length. And may we remember to be more
thoughtful of family and friends; to be more with them; more
mindful of them, more courteous, more kind, more willing to make,
now, more wonderful memories for the future— and more enjoy,
more appreciate loved ones living, that we may have more to tie
us to life now, and more faith for the future, and more memories
to sustain us in any short separation. "Each departed friend is a
magnet that attracts us to the next world,"1 and may each loved one
living tie us to this life we live, and to loved ones everlastingly.

"The Spoken Word," from Temple Square presented over KSL and the
Columbia Broadcasting System, May 29, 1960. Copyright 1960.

Uean Paul Richter.

DECEMBER I960

935

"I HAVE

WITNESSED

MIRACLES"

Gordon B. Hinckley

Assistant to the Council of the Twelve

If I had the wish of my heart I would
ask for the privilege of sitting down and
having this wonderful choir sing again
that hymn which they sang so beauti-
fully this morning:

"I stand all amazed at the love Jesus

offers me,
Confused at the grace that so fully he

proffers me."

I seek the inspiration of the Lord. I
had prepared a talk, but I think I shall

discuss something else. Brother Dyer
has been speaking of the work in Europe,
and I rejoice at the marvelous things
that are being accomplished there. I
wish to say that I feel that the same
spirit, the power of the Lord upon the
people of the earth, is being made mani-
fest all over the world where the gospel
is being taught.

I have recently had the experience,
under the direction of the First Presi-
dency, of going through the missions of
the Orient. I cannot deny the miracles
of God, and I think many of the things
I have seen are truly miracles.

Not long ago, I sat in an old high
school gymnasium in the city of Seoul,
Korea. Just a short time earlier the
blood of the young people of Korea had
been running in the streets of that
strife-ridden city. In our meeting that
evening there were over 500 young
Koreans. I was told that we have only
two married couples who are members
of the Church in all of the Seoul District.
Our members there are young, forward-
looking people. Conducting that gather-
ing was a sandy-haired, Utah farm boy.
He conducted with dignity and spoke
with ease the language of those people,
and after the meeting, as they came up
and put their arms around him, and he
put his arms around them, I marveled at

the power of the gospel of Jesus Christ
to change men's hearts.

We then went down to the sad city
of Pusan on the southern tip of Korea.
We held a street meeting in the park
overlooking the harbor. Within a few
feet of a great anti-aircraft gun emplace-
ment we opened our meeting, and about
150 curious, intelligent-looking people
gathered. A boy from Florida, a mis-
sionary of this Church, began to speak.
I then wandered down into the crowd
with an army sergeant — one of our boys
who was taking us around. A Korean
who spoke some English said in sub-
stance to the sergeant, "How long that
young man been here?" "Two years,"
was the reply. "No — he here longer.
Americans here fifteen years and not
speak our language. Americans not
speak Korean like that." I thought of
the words of the Savior as recorded by
Mark: ". . . they shall speak with new
tongues." (Mark 16:17.)

I remember sitting in this tabernacle
while I was a university student and
hearing one of the brethren say that
peace can come to the world only
through acknowledgment of the Lord
Jesus Christ. I was at a critical age,
and I doubted the possibility of that
ever occurring. I think recently I have
glimpsed the vision of how it might

THE

GREATEST
OF ALL
BLESSINGS

Eldred G. Smith
Patriarch to the Church

This is truly an inspiring sight. I have
thrilled with the messages that have
been given here at this conference. I
am thrilled with the progress of the
missionary work and the growth of the
Church throughout its length and
breadth. This is truly a blessed people
and a choice generation in which to
live.

The gospel of Jesus Christ has been
given to people throughout the earth at
various times, even at the time of Adam
and the time of Noah and coming down
to the time of Abraham, who was given
a very significant promise. Speaking to
Abraham, the Lord said:

"... I give unto thee a promise that

this right shall continue in thee, and
in thy seed after thee [that is to say, the
literal seed, or the seed of the body]
shall all the families of the earth be
blessed, even with the blessings of the
Gospel, which are the blessings of sal-
vation, even of life eternal." (Abraham
2:11.)

This is the time and generation when
this blessing is being fulfilled. The
blessings of the gospel are coming to all
the peoples of the earth. The Lord is
truly touching their hearts and opening
the way for them to receive the gospel.

The Lord is also assisting in other
ways which I have mentioned here be-
fore, I believe, and I cannot help con-
tinually being grateful for the outpour-
ing of knowledge which has come upon
the earth since the restoration of the
gospel, which makes it possible for this
gospel to be taught to all the people of
the earth through the modern facilities
that have been developed and prepared
and which continue to grow. I am very
thankful and grateful for these facilities.

The Church Section of the News re-
cently mentioned the number of copies
of the Book of Mormon being printed —
nearly 500,000 copies are being printed
annually and sent throughout the world.
The facilities that make it possible to

send the Book of Mormon to the ends
of the earth, among the various peoples
of the earth, as has been indicated here
by other speakers, are peculiar to our
Church. Not only the Book of Mormon
but also much other Church literature
is being translated into many languages
so that not only we of the English speak-
ing peoples may have the gospel, but
also many others throughout the earth.

This is truly a choice generation. I
am sure there is no blessing given but
what there is an obligation. Where
much is given, much is expected. We
have heard from many speakers at this
conference of our obligation to teach
the gospel, to warn our neighbors, and
above all to live the gospel ourselves. I
would like just briefly to refer to a
revelation given by the Lord. In section
41 of the Doctrine and Covenants, he
said:

"Hearken and hear, O ye my people,
saith the Lord and your God, ye whom
I delight to bless with the greatest of all
blessings, ye that hear me; and ye that
hear me not will I curse, that have pro-
fessed my name, with the heaviest of
all cursings." (D&C 41:1.)

This is a strong warning, but I be-
lieve truly that the Lord means what he
says. He has given us the blessings; he

936

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

happen. ,. -:.v i, , ;i

Not long ago we were in Hiroshima,
Japan. We stood in the park and
green grows the grass at the site where
on the sixth of August 1945, just fifteen
years ago, 80,000 lives were taken with
the blinding flash of the first atomic
bomb. Another 80,000 have since died
from the effects of it. It is a sobering
experience to stand in that place.

There is a simple monument about
the size of this pulpit, and it has in-
scribed on its face in Japanese characters,
words which say in translation: "Rest in
peace. May this tragedy never again
come to the world:"

There were three of us, the mission
president, a man from Hiroshima, and
myself. The man from Hiroshima was a
Japanese businessman, an elder of the
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day
Saints, a man who had served in the
Japanese Imperial Army for nine years.
I was an elder of the Church of Jesus
Christ of Latter-day Saints from the
land which had dropped the bomb.
With emotion and sincerity he said,
through an interpreter, "Thank God for
the missionaries. Last night my wife
and I were on our knees, as we are each
night, to express gratitude for the com-
ing of these two young men who have
literally saved our lives. We had noth-

ing to live for, no hope here or hereafter,
and we were drinking ourselves to death.
They came. They taught us. They
brought purpose into our lives. The
change in me has been so noticeable
that my partner became curious. I have
been teaching him the gospel, and I am
now going to baptize him."

That is the way peace will come to
the world. This thing shall spread from
soul to soul, and men in all lands shall
come to acknowledge Jesus Christ as
the Son of God, the Savior of mankind,
our Elder Brother, the Prince of Peace.

We sat in a testimony meeting one
day a few months ago. A boy stood up
with a letter in his hand. He said, "I
think I am happier than I have ever
been in my life. I have had many
wonderful experiences here, and they
have made me happy, but it is this
letter that has really warmed my heart.
My father, once active, began drinking,
and oh, the sorrow my mother has suf-
fered because of this. After my farewell
my father said, 'My son, I am going to
try to live worthy of you.' Now," the
missionary said, "I have a letter from
my father, received yesterday, which
says that last week he was ordained a
high priest and set apart as counselor
in the bishopric of our ward, and he
has fust made a down payment on a

home for the first time in his life."

These are some of the miracles I have
seen in my associations with our mis-
sionaries. I am grateful, I am more
grateful than I can say for this great
program of the Church that I have been
blessed to be associated with. I . know
it is one of the marks of the divinity of
this work. No other organization in
this world has anything quite like it.
It touches for good the lives of all who
are affected by it.

The work is going forward on the
other side of the earth. I recall sitting
here as a boy and hearing President
Grant tell of his difficulties in Japan
and of his praying to the Lord to give
him another assignment because of his
discouragement. Do you know that the
missionaries of the Northern Far East
Mission have baptized an average of
about six converts per missionary so far
this year? Many of these were not
Christian people. Our missionaries in
this part of the world have taken to
people who are of the Oriental religions
the testimony of Jesus and have con-
verted them to this cause. God bless
them for their devotion and their faith-
fulness. The Lord bless us at home to
sustain his work throughout the world
by the virtues of our lives, I pray, in the
name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

continues to pour out his blessings upon
us in rich abundance; and then he
gives the warning that we who have
accepted the gospel, if we do not live up
to these covenants, he will pour out upon
us "the heaviest of all cursings."

I could not help thinking when
Brother Hinckley was speaking about
Hiroshima, that this summer I visited
again at Oakridge, Tennessee, and found
that the process which developed the
atomic bomb which was dropped on
Hiroshima is now so obsolete that that
process is no longer in operation. If we
think of what might happen to this
world if the people of this world do
not keep the commandments of the Lord,
we cannot stretch our imagination far
enough to imagine what the Lord might
pour out upon this generation when he
says, he might pour out upon us "the
heaviest of all cursings." All the bless-
ings and all the scientific developments
which have been given to us, might be
turned upon us to our condemnation.

I pray the Lord's blessings upon us
that we will heed his teachings, that
we will teach our neighbor and develop
righteousness throughout this earth.

The history generally given to us in
the Book of Mormon and all this world's
history is a repetition of righteousness

with peace and prosperity, and with
unrighteousness there is war and desola-
tion. This shall be repeated throughout
the life of this earth, and we are no
exception.

May the Lord's blessings be with us,
that we may ever be faithful, keeping

the commandments of the Lord and
doing that which he desires of us in
teaching the gospel to our neighbors,
our friends, our relatives; and so live the
gospel that we will be that kind of mis-
sionary, I pray in the name of Jesus
Christ. Amen.

THE TIME IS NOW

BY MILDRED GRACE BARNEY

The Time is now.

Wait not to do the things your heart desires

Until that day when cares are few and there is time.

That day is but a sprite with dancing feet,

Who keeps forever just beyond your reach.

The time is now.

How often have you passed a weary soul

And did not pause to give a cheering word or smile.

Let not your golden chance slip by, the door

Once closed, perhaps may open nevermore.

The time is now.

DECEMBER I960

937

^J9fy-f

OUR

HISTORIC

TABERNACLE

LeGrand Richards

of the Council of the Twelve

I am very grateful to my Heavenly
Father, brothers and sisters, for the privi-
lege of attending this conference with
you, for your faith and devotion, for the
service you render, and for my associa-
tion with my brethren of the General
Authorities.

In my heart I welcome the three new
ones that have come to us this day.

I feel grateful for my membership in
this Church, more than for anything
else in all this world, and I do not
know how I could live without it.

In President McKay's opening re-
marks and in two of the prayers that
have been offered at the commencement
of these meetings, reference has been
made to the privilege of being here in
this historic building. As we come here
from time to time in our various meet-
ings and gatherings, we hear that ex-
pression, and I would like to make a
few comments on what makes this
building so historic. It is wonderful as
we think of the great men, prophets of
this dispensation, who have occupied
this pulpit, and of the counsel and the
advice they have given and the testi-
monies that have been borne and the
experiences related of the hand-dealings
of the Lord with his people and his
guidance and direction through the
years. Then we recall the wonderful
music and prayers we have heard from
time to time, as we have come here, all
of which has made an impression upon
our lives, until we have left this build-
ing with new hope and new ambition
and new desires.

I was reading a pamphlet a few days
ago that was given to my father by
his mother before I was born, and in
that pamphlet it reported a special
conference held in the Old Tabernacle
on the 28th of August, 1852, for the
purpose of calling missionaries. We
have heard a lot about missionaries and
missionary work at this conference, but
that is one of our great responsibilities.
In that meeting there were some 3,000
elders of Israel present and the full
Presidency of the Church, President
Brigham Young, President Heber C.
Kimball, and President Willard Rich-
ards, seven of the twelve, and most of
the General Authorities.

President Kimball was asked to speak
to the brethren present, the elders of
Israel, about the purpose of the meeting,
and he told them that they were there,
many of them, to be called into the
mission field, and ninety-eight of them
were called and assigned to the follow-
ing places: The British Isles, France,
Germany, Capital of Prussia (Berlin),
Norway, Denmark, Gibraltar, Hindoo-
stan, Siam, China, Cape of Good Hope
(South Africa), Nova Scotia and British
Provinces in America, West Indies,
British Guiana, Australia, Sandwich Is-
lands, and parts of the United States.

Mind you, that was only five years
after the Saints had gathered here from
their drivings in the East and before
there were any railroads, and yet they
were sent out to these distant lands.

We heard yesterday from Bishop
Wirthlin some of the sacrifices that
these early brethren made in order that
this great missionary cause would con-
tinue to roll forth. My grandfather and
the grandfather of Brother Franklin D.
Richards, whom you sustained here
today, out of the first fourteen years of
his married life, spent ten years of it in
the mission field away from his family.
That was typical of what many of the
brethren did.

I thought you would be interested to
hear a statement or two by President
Kimball to those elders upon the occa-
sion mentioned. He declared:

"I say to those of you who are elected
to go on missions, go, if you never re-
turn, and commit what you have into
the hands of God — your wives, your
children, your brethren, and your
property."

Nearly all of these men were married,
and they had only been here a short
time to establish their families. Elder
George A. Smith, the following speaker,
said:

"The missions we will call for during
this conference, are generally not to be
very long ones, probably from three to
seven years will be as long as any man
will be absent from his family."

And then he continued:

"If any of the elders refuse to go, they
may expect that their wives will not
live with them, for there is not a Mor-
mon sister who would live with a man
a day, who would refuse to go on a
mission."

That is quite a statement, and while
it seems to us today a little extreme,
nevertheless, when you travel through
this Church and see the sacrifices that
are being made — Brother Isaacson re-
ferred to them this afternoon — to sustain
these somewhat 8,000 missionaries in
the field, it is a wonderful thing.

I would like to relate two experiences
I have had in interviewing missionaries.
A few years back, I interviewed a young
man in southern Utah before we had
discontinued sending young married
men into the mission field, and when I
looked at his recommend papers I saw
that he was a married man, and I said:
"Does your wife want you to go on this
mission?" He said she did, and I said,
"Why didn't you bring her?" He said,
"I couldn't. She just gave birth to our
first child this morning in the hospital."
Then I said, "Well, then we will have
to go to the hospital." And we did, and
there was that young mother with her
firstborn child in her arms. I said, "Do
you want this husband of yours to go
on a mission?" She said, "Brother
Richards, I surely do. When we mar-
ried we decided that our marriage should
not stand in the way of his mission, and

Sunday Morning Session,
October 9, 1960

THE

OPEN

TOMB

Hugh B. Brown

of the Council of the Twelve

I am sure we are all grateful to the Lord
for the presence here of President Clark,
for the privilege of listening to his in-
spiring and dynamic testimony, and for
his admonition and advice. It is very
humbling indeed to be asked to follow
him. I shall simply add my testimony
to his, that this is the Church of Jesus
Christ; the qualifying phrase "of Latter-
day Saints" distinguishes its members
from members of the same Church in
former times, who are referred to in the
New Testament as Saints.

We worship God the Father through
his Son Jesus Christ. It is he, the Savior,
who is the Head of the Church, its great
High Priest, its Founder, and its Inspira-
tion. All others, whether they be
prophets, apostles, elders, members — all
others are willingly subservient to him.
We agree with the Apostle Paul that
". . . there is none other name under
heaven given among men, whereby we
must be saved." (Acts 4:12.)

We are informed that there are per-
haps more nonmembers than members

938

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

my parents are able and willing to care
for me and the baby." And so he went
on his mission and was a wonderful
missionary. I kept in touch with that
little woman while he was gone.

I had a similar experience in Provo.
I interviewed a young man under the
same circumstances, except that his wife
was just expecting a call to go to the
hospital any moment, to give birth to
their first child. Later as I visited in
Idaho in one of the stakes, I stayed in
the home of the stake president, and
there was this little mother, taking care
of her baby while that missionary-
husband was in the mission field.

The Lord has put into this Church
the breath of life. He has made it pos-
sible for people to make the supreme
sacrifice, almost, in order that this work
will go forward in all the earth. You
remember when one came to him and
said, "Lord, I will follow thee whither-
soever thou goest," and the answer was,
"Foxes have holes, and the birds of the
air have nests; but the Son of man
hath not where to lay his head." (Luke
9:57-58.) And so, of course, the man
turned away. Unto another he said,
"Follow me. But he said, Lord, suffer
me first to go and bury my father."
And as if the Master would speak to all
coming generations of the importance
of this great missionary cause, he said:
"Let the dead bury their dead: but go
thou and preach the kingdom of God."
(Ibid., 59-60.) Now that spirit has pre-
vailed and carried on this great mission-
ary cause of the Church.

I remember being in this Tabernacle
as a boy when President Woodruff gave
what I think was his last address to
the people, when he told how mar-
velously the Spirit of the Lord had
guided him all through his ministry.
I remember the story he told about
traveling east on one of his missionary
journeys, and in the middle of the night
he was warned by the Spirit to arise
and move his wagon and team. They
were fastened by a large oak that
had stood possibly a hundred years
and had never been disturbed, and after

he had moved the wagon and the team,
a whirlwind came and took that oak
tree up by the roots and threw it right
where his wagon had been stationed.

Such testimonies are what have made
this a historic building. One could
hardly say that he did not know that
the power of God was in this work, and
that his Spirit operates and guides and
directs. Such things could not be, except
the power of God is with this people.

In that same address, I remember his
telling of bringing a group of immi-
grants from England, I think it was,
and when they were about to embark
on a boat at New Orleans, and he was
making arrangements with the captain,
that same Spirit told him not to go, either
himself or his company, and so he
excused himself, and they did not go
on that boat. And it had only gone up
the river a short distance when it caught
fire and burned, and everybody on it was
killed. He said, "If I had not listened
to the Spirit of the Lord, we would not
have bishop so-and-so and president so-
and-so," naming them right from this
very pulpit. This is a historic building.
The power of God has been and is here.

I would like to refer to another expe-
rience related by President Woodruff as
he stood here and talked in the con-
ference in 1898, and this is recorded in
the Conference Report. He said: "I am
going to bear my testimony to this as-
sembly if I never do it again in my
life that those men who laid the founda-
tion of this American government, and
signed the Declaration of Independence,
were the best spirits the God of heaven
could find on the face of the earth.
They were choice spirits, not wicked
men. General Washington and all the
men that labored for the purpose were
inspired of the Lord.

"Another thing I am going to say
here, because I have a right to say it:
Everyone of those men that signed the
Declaration of Independence with Gen-
eral Washington called upon me as an
Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ in the
temple at St. George, two consecutive
nights, and demanded at my hands that

I should go forth and attend to the
ordinances of the House of God for
them." And he and others did that
work for them.

Such an experience would seem al-
most incredible to the world. The
things of God are understood, Paul says,
by the Spirit of God, and the things of
man are understood by the spirit of
man, and the natural man receiveth not
the things of the Spirit of God, for they
are foolishness unto him. (1 Cor. 2:14.)
If God could take Elijah to heaven with-
out tasting death, if he could promise to
send him again, as Malachi declared,
to turn the hearts of the fathers to the
children lest he come and smite the
earth with a curse (Mai. 4:5-6), surely
he could permit such characters as
George Washington and the signers of
the Declaration of Independence to come
back to ask for their blessings, because
they were sent upon this earth before
Elijah came, before holy temples had
been built, before men could receive
the holy ordinances of the house of the
Lord for their exaltation.

I bear my testimony in closing that
there is not a man and a woman in this
world — in or out of the Church — if God
would only give them the vision to see
and the heart to understand that would
not do everything within their power to
obtain such blessings as these men
sought at the hands of this apostle of
this dispensation who later became the
President of this great Church. This
is in keeping with the promise of the
building of the house of the God of
Jacob in the latter-days in the top of
the mountains, and the gathering there-
unto from all the nations of the earth
to learn of his ways and walk in his
paths. How rich we are in the blessings
of God, and how great have been the
things that have come out of this his-
toric building.

God grant that we may so live that
in all our ministry we may be prompted
and guided and inspired by that same
Spirit, I humbly pray, and leave you my
blessing, in the name of the Lord
Jesus Christ. Amen.

present and listening in. To all of you
out there we bid a hearty welcome and
wish to include you in the usual Latter-
day Saint greeting: "Brothers and sis-
ters."

Perhaps many of you would refer to
the Church as the "Mormon" Church;
while we do not object to that designa-
tion, it may be a bit misleading. Mor-
mon was an ancient American prophet,
whose name was given to a sacred record
which he compiled; but though this may
be called the Mormon Church, it is not

the Church of Mormon, nor is it the
Church of Joseph Smith nor of Brigham
Young, nor of any other man. It is the
Church of Jesus Christ.

Reference has been made in this con-
ference to the chaotic condition of the
world on account of communism. While
I shall not dwell on this at length, we
all know that our world is divided and
imperiled; that though the Western na-
tions believe in God, or claim to, and
in the freedom of men, and the worth of
the individual, there are hundreds of

millions of our fellow men who are
being taught that God is a myth and
religion but an opiate; who are being
indoctrinated, while their minds and
bodies are enslaved, to believe in the
monstrous supremacy of the totalitarian
state.

While we are preaching Christ and
him crucified, there are millions on the
earth who dare not mention his name
except in derision and anathema. The
battlefronts in this cold war are divided
into sectors: social, economic, scientific,

DECEMBER 1960

939

geographic, ideological; but the one front
on which the enemy is concentrating,
the one front which makes him gnash
his teeth at its very name, is the front
which may be called "God and religion."
The war — cold or hot — will be waged by
the followers of Christ versus anti-
Christ.

That being true, it is incumbent upon
all Christians everywhere, and again I
am speaking to you, our friends out there,
it behooves us to re-examine our creeds,
our fundamental concepts, our basic
faith, and ask ourselves again the mean-
ing of the word "God" in our theology,
and the place of God in our lives. Our
allegiance must be intelligent and well-
defined.

Every man should answer for himself
the question, "What think ye of Christ?"
(Matt. 22:42.) I should like to bear
my testimony of him and indicate briefly
his status in the minds and hearts of
all Latter-day Saints as background and
introductory, or, by way of contrast —
for none other, however great, can be
compared to him — may I call attention
for a moment to what the tourist may
see when he goes to Europe or the
Middle East, as he visits the birthplaces
and the resting places of the notable
ones of the earth — the poets, authors,
soldiers, and statesmen.

The tourist will probably be impressed
by the ruins of ancient cities and the
crumbling monuments and tombstones
of many who are called great. Some of
these ancients built and garnished their
own sepulchres and gilded their tombs
in order to display their wealth and to
indicate their status. The visitor will
be impressed by the Colosseum in Rome,
the Acropolis in Athens, and admire
the work of former masters in art, litera-
ture, philosophy, and government. He
will be reminded of the pomp of the
Pharaohs in Egypt as he visits the pyra-
mids, and may ask: "Why such colossal
expenditure of money and time and lives
to build a tomb?" He will probably
leave without an answer to his question
and remember only the inscrutable smile
of the Sphinx.

But if his tour leads him to the Holy
Land, he will be inspired by the thought
that though Rome had her Caesars, her
master artists, and her geniuses; though
Athens had her conquerors, her states-
men, and her philosophers; though
Egypt had her pompous dictators and
her unrelenting Pharaohs, it remained
for little Bethlehem and later for
Nazareth and Galilee to give to this
world its most transcendent personage.

In Jerusalem one has the privilege
of standing before an open tomb — a
tomb that was once closed by a great
stone on which was placed the seal of
Rome and over which a guard was
mounted. But that stone was rolled
away, that seal was broken, that guard
was overcome, that tomb was opened
by an angel of the Lord. That borrowed

sepulchre was neither gilded nor deco-
rated, and in it was found no earthly
treasure, for its temporary tenant was
destitute of worldly goods. In life he
had no place to lay his head, and in
death there was no place to lay his
body — hence, the pity of a friend.

But there came forth from that lowly
tomb riches beyond all price. The life-
less body, which was placed there by
loving hands three days previously, came
forth from that tomb triumphant over
death, a resurrected, glorified Personage,
the first fruits of them that slept. And
the rewards of that victory are to be
shared among all men everywhere, for
as Paul said, "For since by man came
death, by man came also the resurrec-
tion of the dead.

DUST BOWL CASUALTY

BY LORA N. CONANT

The yellow dust that drifted in upon

the little ranch,
The yellow smoke that settled down

upon the open range
Lay like a heavy sorrow upon the

people,
Made milling cattle restless, wild,

and strange,
Let loose a nameless terror among

the stabled horses,
Crept around windows, sneaked be-
neath the door,
And drove the peace and happiness

that nested there
Fleeing to hunt another home once

more.

"For as in Adam all die, even so in
Christ shall all be made alive." (1 Cor.
15:21-22.)

And what was it that came from that
open tomb? Was it merely a spirit?
He himself answered that question when
he stood among his followers who were
amazed and frightened at his appear-
ance. He said to them, ". . . Why are
ye troubled? and why do thoughts arise
in your hearts?

"Behold my hands and my feet, that
it is I myself: handle me, and see; for
a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye
see me have." (Luke 24:38-39.)

Brothers and sisters, this Babe of
Bethlehem, this Carpenter of Nazareth,
this Man of Galilee, never wrote a
book, and yet the story of what he said
and did during the three short years of
his ministry, which was faithfully,
though only partially, recorded by his
humble disciples, has been read and re-
read by more people in more languages
than any other book.

He left no masterpiece on canvas,
and yet his life and death have been
the inspiration for more artists than any
other subject. He left no monument in
stone or bronze or marble, and yet the
image of his divine manhood has been
an inspiration to millions down through
the centuries.

But we testify of and worship not
only one who lived and died two thou-
sand years ago — and we hope you, our
friends, will note what now we say,
for we declare it by authority and by
commandment — we testify of one who
was also resurrected from the dead and
is now living — one who is comprehen-
sible, one who has a material, though
an immortal body as he himself de-
clared when he said to his astonished
followers: "Handle me and see." It
was that same body which ascended
into heaven out near Bethany when a
cloud enveloped him, and to the amaze-
ment and astonishment of his followers,
he ascended into heaven. Two men in
white standing by said, "Ye men of
Galilee, why stand ye gazing into
heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken
up from you into heaven, shall so come
in like manner as ye have seen him go
into heaven." (Acts 1:11.)

Peter declared that the heaven must
receive him until the time of the ". . .
restitution of all things, which God hath
spoken by the mouth of all his holy
prophets since the world began." (Ibid.,
3:21.)

Yes, we testify of the First Begotten of
the Father in the spirit, the Only Begot-
ten Son of God in the flesh, a member
of the Holy Trinity, the Creator of the
world. To prove he was the Creator
we quote the words of John, the Apostle:
"In the beginning was the Word, and
the Word was with God, and the Word
was God. The same was in the be-
ginning with God. All things were
made by him; and without him was
not any thing made that was made."
(John 1:1-3.) That the Word referred
to was none other than the Christ
becomes evident when one reads the
fourteenth verse: "And the Word was
made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and
we beheld his glory, the glory as of
the only begotten of the Father,) full
of grace and truth." (Ibid., 1:14.)

The Apostle Paul also bears testimony
of him as the Creator: "For by him
were all things created, that are in
heaven, and that are in earth, visible
and invisible, whether they be thrones,
or dominions, or principalities, or
powers: all things were created by him,
and for him:

"And he is before all things, and by
him all things consist." (Colossians
1:16-17.)

We read of him in Hebrews: "God, . . .

"Hath in these last days spoken unto
us by his Son, whom he hath appointed
heir of all things, by whom also he made
the worlds;

940

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

"Who being the brightness of his
glory, and the express image of his per-
son, and upholding all things by the
word of his power, when he had by
himself purged our sins, sat down on
the right hand of the Majesty on high;"
(Hebrews 1:1-3.)

We speak of him of whom Isaiah
prophesied when he said: ". . . Behold,
a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son,
and shall call his name Immanuel."
(Isaiah 7:14.) That he had reference
to the Babe of Bethlehem is evidenced
by what the angel said to the confused
and bewildered Joseph, whose beloved
Mary was about to bear a child. The
angel said to Joseph: "Joseph, thou son
of David, fear not to take unto thee
Mary thy wife: for that which is con-
ceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.

"And she shall bring forth a son,
and thou shalt call his name JESUS:
for he shall save his people from their
sins.

"Now all this was done, that it
might be fulfilled which was spoken of
the Lord by the prophet, saying,

"Behold, a virgin shall be with child,
and shall bring forth a son, and they
shall call his name Emmanuel, which
being interpreted is, God with us."
(Matthew 1:20-23.)

He himself proclaimed his Godhood,
and his heirship when he was chal-
lenged by his persecutors after he had
said, "I and my Father are one."

They wanted to stone him, and he
said, ". . . for which of my works do
you stone me?" And they said, "For a
good work we stone thee not; but for
blasphemy; and because that thou, being
a man, makest thyself God." And he
answered them, "Say ye of him, whom
the Father hath sanctified, and sent into
the world, Thou blasphemest; because
I said, I am the Son of God?

"If I do not the works of my Father,
believe me not." (John 10:30-33, 36-
37.)

As to the actuality of the resurrection
of Christ, his divinity, his universal
Godhood, let us hear his own declaration
and read the testimony of a multitude
of people on the American continent, to
whom he appeared just after his cruci-
fixion.

This scripture may be new to many of
you, but in America, as in Jerusalem,
there were holy men of God who spake
as they were moved by the Holy Ghost.
You will remember reading in Luke's
account of the crucifixion: "And it was
about the sixth hour, and there was a
darkness over all the earth until the
ninth hour.

"And the sun was darkened, and the
veil of the temple was rent in the midst."
(Luke 23:44-45.) And in Matthew:
"And behold, the veil of the temple
was rent in twain from the top to the
bottom; and the earth did quake, and
the rocks rent;

"And the graves were opened; and

many bodies of the saints which slept
arose." (Matthew 27:51-52.)

Now this thick darkness, which cov-
ered the earth, and the convulsions of
the earth at the time of the crucifixion,
extended to America. Here the darkness
lasted three days, and it was so thick
upon all the face of the land that the
people could feel the vapor of darkness,
and they could make no light.

At the end of the period of darkness
and upheaval, they who survived were
assembled near the temple. There they
heard a voice as if it came out of heaven.
They did not understand it at first, but
afterwards understood when the voice
said:

"Behold my Beloved Son, in whom I
am well pleased, in whom I have glori-
fied my name — hear ye him.

FIREPLACE THERAPY

BY THELMA IRELAND

Flames flirt with bursting embers,

A shooting star escapes,

Ghost shadows prowl the fire-lit

room,
Cartooning contours, shapes.
Reflections dance on woodwork
As interesting as flames.
They make the room a mystic blend
Of patterns without names.
The worries blend with flame's

ballet.
They vanish with a flash
And all the nagging cares of day
Resolve to cindered ash.

"And it came to pass, as they under-
stood they cast their eyes up again to-
ward heaven; and behold, they saw a
Man descending out of heaven; and he
was clothed in a white robe; and he
came down and stood in the midst of
them; and the eyes of the whole multi-
tude were turned upon him, and they
durst not open their mouths, even one
to another, and wist not what it meant,
for they thought it was an angel that
had appeared unto them.

"And it came to pass that he stretched
forth his hand and spake unto the peo-
ple, saying:

"Behold, I am Jesus Christ, whom the
prophets testified shall come into the
world.

"And behold, I am the light and the
life of the world; and I have drunk out
of that bitter cup which the Father hath
given me, and have glorified the Father
in taking upon me the sins of the world,
in the which I have suffered the will of
the Father in all things from the be-
ginning.

"And it came to pass that when Jesus
had spoken these words the whole multi-
tude fell to the earth; for they remem-
bered that it had been prophesied among; »
them that Christ should show himself
unto them after his ascension into
heaven.

"And it came to pass that the Lord
spake unto them saying:

"Arise and come forth unto me, that
ye may thrust your hands into my side,
and also that ye may feel the prints of
the nails in my hands and in my feet,
that ye may know that I am the God
of Israel, and the God of the whole
earth, and have been slain for the sins
of the world.

"And it came to pass that the multi-
tude went forth, and thrust their hands
into his side, and did feel the prints of
the nails in his hands and in his feet;
and this they did do, going forth one by
one until they had all gone forth, and
did see with their eyes and did feel with
their hands, and did know of a surety
and did bear record, that it was he, of
whom it was written by the prophets,
that should come.

"And when they had all gone forth
and had witnessed for themselves, they
did cry out with one accord, saying:

"Hosanna! Blessed be the name of the
Most High God! And they did fall
down at the feet of Jesus, and did
worship him." (3 Nephi 11:7-17.)

And thus we have the testimony of
eyewitnesses from two continents that
Jesus is the Christ. We add our testi-
mony not only that he did live, but
that he still lives. This fact is the
greatest hope of this divided and im-
periled world, for if the Christ still
lives then the anti-Christ will be de-
feated. There can be no peace in a
godless world.

But our testimony would not be com-
plete if we did not reaffirm our faith
in the second coming of Christ, in the
millennium which is to come when he
will reign as King of kings, and Lord
of lords. That this climactic event is
not far distant is indicated by the signs
of the times, by wars and rumors of
wars, by the satanic schemes of evil
men who would enslave not only the
bodies but also the minds of all who
dare refuse to subscribe to the ideologies
invented by the anti-Christ.

May the time soon come when he
again will say to this troubled world,
"Peace I leave with' you. My peace I
give unto you; not as the world giveth,
give I unto you. Let not your heart be
troubled, neither let it be afraid." (John
14:27.)

God grant that we may be prepared
for that day and in the interim be
unafraid, knowing that he still lives
and that as he said of himself: "All
power is given unto mc in heaven and
in earth." (Matt. 28:18.) Of him I
humbly testify in the name of Jesus
Christ. Amen.

DECEMBER 1960

941

NEED FOR
WITNESS OF
THE SPIRIT

A. Theodore Tuttle

of the First Council of the Seventy

My dear brothers and sisters, I have
had more compliments on the talk I
did not give yesterday, than I have ever
had on one I actually gave. I am sure

those who thus commented were think-
ing of the advice that Brother Henry
Taylor gave yesterday about the re-
sponsibility of improving upon silence.

Last night in priesthood meeting, I
missed the voice that has always made
an eloquent plea for unity, and I am
grateful this morning that I heard that
voice bear such a powerful testimony to
the divinity of this work. [President }.
Reuben Clark, Jr., could not attend
priesthood meeting.]

Where else could you go in the world
and find such certainty and knowledge
that God lives and that Jesus Christ is
his Son. Contrast what we have heard
the past few days with this statement:

"Several years ago in a seminary
recognized as perhaps the greatest in
this country, a doctor of divinity, who
had a string of honorary doctoral de-

grees and who is on the board of
directors of one of the largest Protestant
churches in America, in lecturing to a
large group of students, most of whom
already had bachelor of divinity degrees,
said, sympathetically:

" 'I know that it is difficult for you
men to teach creeds which you, your-
selves, do not believe, but you have the
social obligation to do it.' "

Another man in the same institution,
having about the same academic cre-
dentials, declared: "Who knows but
what in the year 2004 or some other
year, there will live a man who will live
more perfectly than did Jesus. Then
we will worship him as the Son of God,
rather than Jesus. The reason we wor-
ship Jesus as the Son of God is because
he lived the most perfect life of any
man of whom we have knowledge."

"KEEP FAITH
WITH YOUR
FAMILY"

Delbert L. Stapley

of the Council of the Twelve

My brothers and sisters, it is good to be
here. I think I should like to use as
the springboard for my message, the
closing remarks of President Clark and a
suggestion just made by Brother Tuttle.
My message for this conference is di-
rected to parents and emphasizes the
theme introduced to the membership of
the Church this year in connection with
the stake conferences, ''Keep Faith with
Your Family."

My remarks apply also to the youth
of the Church, who will be the parents
of tomorrow, for they also should be
interested in laying the foundation
values now for the building of ideal
Latter-day Saint homes of their own
after marriage and parenthood — homes
where love, harmony, and mutual af-
fection predominate and the gospel is
both taught and lived.

May I begin by reminding you that
God extends to earthly parents a choice
blessing when he sends a spirit son or
daughter of his to dwell in a mortal
body provided by them. God grants
to parents, if they have complied with
his gospel laws and ordinances, the
children born to them in the new and

everlasting covenant of marriage, or
sealed to them by the authority of the
Holy Priesthood of God as their very
own throughout the eternities of time.

This knowledge adds joy, happiness,
and glory to joint-heirship with Christ
in all that the Father possesses, even the
gift of his own spirit children. Every
child is born in complete innocence
here on earth. The Lord entrusts these
choice spirit children of his to earthly
parents, with a hope that through proper
teaching and training they will ever keep
them moral, true, and faithful. God
has revealed this truth in our day:
"Every spirit of man was innocent in
the beginning; and God having re-
deemed man from the fall, men became
again, in their infant state, innocent
before God." (D&C 93:38.)

Our Savior, giving his life on the
cross, redeemed us from the effects of
the fall; therefore, every soul at birth
stands innocent before God.

In the modern revelations the Lord
has given important instruction to par-
ents, detailing their responsibility in the
upbringing of their children. After
children come to bless parents with the
joy and happiness of possession, the Lord
has admonished that "Every member of
the church of Christ having children is
to bring them unto the elders before the
church, who are to lay their hands upon
them in the name of Jesus Christ, and
bless them in his name." (Ibid., 20:70.)
Here, then, is one of the first duties of
parents: to have their children blessed by
the elders of the Church. What a privi-
lege and proper beginning for a child to
be blessed by the elders of the Church in
the name of Jesus Christ!

Now, God has revealed that "little
children are redeemed from the founda-

tion of the world through mine Only
Begotten;

"Wherefore, they cannot sin, for
power is not given unto Satan to tempt
little children, until they begin to be-
come accountable before me." (Ibid.,
29:46-47.)

Parents, therefore, have these early,
golden years of a child's life in which
to teach, train, and mold its character,
when Satan is not given power to tempt
or to mislead it. But there does come
a time in the lives of children for indi-
vidual responsibility and accountability,
a time when they are to act for them-
selves, and receive the gospel and its
ordinances and to be baptized for a
remission of their sins.

The Lord has declared that, "No one
can be received into the church of
Christ unless he has arrived unto the
years of accountability before God, and
is capable of repentance." (Ibid., 20:71.)
Parents, looking forward to the time of
individual responsibility of children for
their own acts, should carefully heed
this admonition from the Lord:

"And again, inasmuch as parents have
children in Zion, or in any of her stakes
which are organized, that teach them
not to understand the doctrine of re-
pentance, faith in Christ the Son of the
living God, and of baptism and the gift
of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of
the hands, when eight years old, the
sin be upon the heads of the parents."
(Ibid., 68:25.)

Parents, therefore, have the responsi-
bility of teaching to the understanding
of their children the gospel truths, prin-
ciples, and ordinances, and to prepare
them for baptism and the laying on of
hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost
when they attain the age of eight years,

942

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

Does the world need the message of
Mormonism? I think it needs nothing
more than to know the true concept of
the Godhead, to have borne upon their
souls the testimony that has been borne
here these days of conference; — the testi-
mony that comes through the gift and
power of the Holy Ghost, that bears
witness to our souls and our hearts that
God does live. He is real. He is a
glorified, resurrected Being, and he is
our Father, and he loves us. He ". . . so
loved the world, that he gave his only
begotten Son, that whosoever believeth
in him should not perish, but have ever-
lasting life." (John 3:16.)

Jesus is the Savior. We declare
boldly, yet humbly, to all of the world
that he is the Redeemer; that he atoned
for the sins of man, and he is veritably
the Son of God.

I am grateful that we have had re-
stored to us today, another witness that
this is so. This witness comes from the
Book of Mormon. Nephi saw in vision
that Mary was to be the mother of the
Son of God after the manner of the
flesh. (1 Nephi 11:18.) The Book of
Mormon further witnesses that Jesus
Christ did come to this people on this
continent. They bore testimony that
he lives.

I am grateful for the Prophet Joseph
Smith, who said he saw two Personages
stand above him in the air, and that the
one called him by name and said, "This
is My Beloved Son. Hear Him!" (Joseph
Smith 2:17.) And I would add to the
testimonies that have been borne in con-
ference, my own testimony. It has come
to me through the gift and power of the
Holy Ghost. I know that God lives,

that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.
I am grateful for this witness of the
Spirit to my soul.

I would plead with the parents of this
Church to prepare their sons to bear
this testimony to the world, the only
power that will bring peace, because
peace is rooted in righteousness. When
the hearts of men on this earth can be
prepared to receive the witness of the
Spirit, all men will be brothers, and
then peace can come to our hearts.

I pray that we shall hasten this day
through our united efforts by whole-
heartedly supporting these brethren who
direct the affairs of the Lord on earth,
and can contribute both service and sub-
stance to help the work of the Lord
forward. I humbly pray his blessings
upon us, and bear this testimony in the
name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

the age of accountability before God;
otherwise, the sin is upon the heads of
the parents.

To leave no doubt in the minds of
parents about their responsibility and
accountability to this instruction, the
Lord continued by saying:

"For this shall be a law unto the in-
habitants of Zion." The teaching of
gospel principles and thq preparation of
children to receive the ordinances of
the gospel is not something parents can
do only if they want to, because the
Lord emphatically declared that it "shall
be a law unto the inhabitants of
Zion. . . . And their children shall be
baptized for the remission of their sins
when eight years old, and receive the
laying on of the hands." (Ibid., 68:26-
27.)

He did not say that parents could wait
until children are nine or ten or older
before baptism, neither does he suggest
that parents can permit their children
to grow up to maturity and decide for
themselves whether they should be bap-
tized. The Lord said they "shall be
baptized . . . when eight years old."
There can be no question about our
understanding of this instruction.

Because some parents have not at-
tended to this important counsel, many
of their children today and the posterity
of these children are out of the Church,
separated from the greatest gift in life,
and thus are denied all of the blessings
which they could otherwise have re-
ceived from faithful Church member-
ship.

The revelation continues with this
further admonition to parents:

"And they shall also teach their chil-
dren to pray, and to walk uprightly be-
fore the Lord.

"And the inhabitants of Zion shall
also observe the Sabbath day to keep
it holy." (Ibid., 68:28-29.)

The Lord closes this particular in-
struction to parents, by saying:

"Now, I, the Lord, am not well pleased
with the inhabitants of Zion, . . . and
their children are also growing up in
wickedness; they also seek not earnestly
the riches of eternity, but their eyes are
full of greediness.

"These things," said the Lord, "ought
not to be, and must be done away from
among them " (Ibid., 68:31-32.)

To prevent these conditions with their
penalties, parents who desire to abide
by counsel have no alternative except to
follow religiously the admonition and
instruction the Lord has given them in
this revelation. He also issued an addi-
tional warning, which admonishes par-
ents of the obligation they have for the
spiritual upbringing of their children.

In this revelation, the Lord said that
"The glory of God is intelligence, or,
in other words, light and truth.

"Light and truth," said the Lord, "for-
sake that evil one." (Ibid., 93:36-37.)

Then he goes on to say that "Every
spirit of man was innocent in the be-
ginning; and God having redeemed man
from the fall, men became again, in
their infant state, innocent before God."
(Ibid., 93:38.)

And then the warning of the Lord:

"And that wicked one cometh and
taketh away light and truth, through
disobedience, from the children of men,
and because of the tradition of their
fathers." (Ibid., 93:39.)

It is the power of the wicked one or
Satan to deceive and lead children astray
after they arrive at the years of ac-
countability, which parents must guard

against, not only by teaching their chil-
dren correct principles, doctrines, and
life's true values, but also by setting the
proper example before them; otherwise,
false traditions will be built up in the
home which children will absorb to
their eternal harm.

As parents we should ask ourselves
this question: What kind of traditions
are we building up in our home for
our children to absorb and accept into
the pattern of their own lives? Like
father, like son; like mother, like daugh-
ter, is so true. What is good enough for
parents is considered by children to be
good enough for them. What parents
do gives license for children to do.

Again may I ask, what are the tradi-i
tions of our Latter-day Saint homes? Do
we have mutual love, respect, admira-
tion, and loyal devotion between par-
ents? Are we observing the Sabbath day
to keep it holy? Are we attending to
our meetings regularly? Are we taking
our children to Church rather than
sending them? Are we obeying the
Word of Wisdom? Are we having fam-
ily prayer in the home twice daily? Are
we permitting our children to take their
turn in family prayer? Are we paying
an honest tithing? Are we honest and
truthful in our dealings with our fellow
men? Are we obeying the law of chas-
tity? Are we keeping the commandments
of God fully and always setting a proper
example before our children? Are we
responding to ecclesiastical authority
and supporting and speaking well of
those who preside over us?

These are just a few of the things that
decide the kind of traditions in our
homes and determine whether they are
good or bad. Remember that Israel was
so steeped in the false traditions of their

DECEMBER I960

943

fathers that they did not recognize the
Lord Jesus Christ when he came among
them to set up the kingdom of God on
earth. They crucified him for no just
cause.

The traditions of our own homes could
blind the eyes and minds of our chil-
dren against all truth, just principles,
and spiritual values, and could cause
them to depart from the right course
they must follow to earn for them-
selves eternal joy and happiness.

Now, after calling attention to the

traditions of the fathers, the Lord said
to the parents of the Church:

"But I have commanded you to bring
up your children in light and truth."
(Ibid., 93:40.)

To bring up children in light and
truth is to bring them up in an under-
standing and acceptance of the true word
of God. Do our children understand the
doctrine of repentance, of faith in Christ
the Son of the Living God, and the im-
portance of baptism, its purpose, signifi-
cance, and value to them in their lives?
Do they understand the need of receiv-

ing the gift of the Holy Ghost and what
the powers and functions of the Holy
Ghost are, and the blessings which are
theirs through possessing this divine
gift?

I will close by quoting a warning the
Lord gave to Frederick G. Williams,
Second Counselor to the Prophet Joseph
Smith:

". . . You have continued under this
condemnation;

"You have not taught your children
light and truth, according to the com-

Sunday Afternoon Session,
October 9, 1960

COMMUNIST
THREAT
TO THE
AMERICAS

Ezra Taft Benson

of the Council of the Twelve

In keeping with the spirit of that master-
ful opening address by President McKay,
I desire to discuss a matter that has con-
cerned me deeply for several months.
Trusting the Lord will approve, I take as
my text these sober words of warning
from an ancient American prophet:

"And others will he pacify, and lull
them away into carnal security, that they
will say: All is well in Zion; yea, Zion
prospereth, all is well — and thus the
devil cheateth their souls, and leadeth
them away carefully down to hell.

"Therefore, wo be unto him that is at
ease in Zion!

"Wo be unto him that crieth: All is
well!" (2 Nephi 28:21, 24-25.)

We must not be deceived — all is not
well.

We live today in an age of peril. It is
an age in which we are threatened with
the loss not only of wealth and material
prosperity, but also of something far
more precious — our freedom itself. The
very thing that distinguishes man from
the beasts — man's freedom to act: free-
dom to choose — is threatened as never
before by a total and atheistic philosophy
of life known as communism.

In April, I called your attention briefly
to the nature of communism. Let us

remember these basic facts.

Those who subscribe to this philoso-
phy stop at nothing to achieve their ends.
They do not hesitate to destroy — if they
are strong enough — whatever stands in
their way. Our own generation has wit-
nessed the Russian communists liquidate
millions of their fellow countrymen.
Even more recently we have seen the
Chinese communists wipe out millions
of their fellow countrymen — no one
knows the exact number.

To the true communist, nothing is evil
if it is expedient. Being without con-
science or honor, he feels completely
justified in using whatever means are
necessary to achieve his goal: force,
trickery, lies, broken promises, mayhem,
and individual and mass murder.

By these ruthless means communism
has, in a little over forty years, brought
more people under its domination than
the total number of Christians now liv-
ing in the entire world — and Christian-
ity, as the world thinks of it, has been
in existence for nearly two thousand
years.

And what has been the result?

First, in the economic area, men and
women have been stripped of their prop-
erty, their savings confiscated, their farms
taken from them, their businesses seized
by the state. They work where they are
commanded to work and for such wages
as the state chooses to provide. They
cannot quit, take another job, or rebel in
any tangible way. They are the puppets
of the all-powerful state.

Second, in the intellectual area, they
are forbidden to listen to radio broad-
casts not approved by the state. They
have little or no access to free world
books, magazines, and newspapers. They
have no voice in the education of their
children in the schools. They and their
children are cast in a communist mold.
To write or speak against the state is to
ask for exile, imprisonment, or possibly
even death.

Third, in the area of morals, faith in

moral principle is ruthlessly ridiculed
and stripped of dignity. The belief that
man has certain inalienable rights, so
endowed by his Creator, is categorically
denied. Atheistic communist leaders,
scoffers at God himself, are striving to
blot the Almighty out of the minds of
one-third of the world's people.

To do all this, they rule with iron
fists. They seek to hammer into obliv-
ion all who would oppose them. Indeed
it is true as the poet said:

"Man's inhumanity to man
Makes countless thousands mourn."
(Robert Burns, Man Was Made to
Mourn, Stanza 7.)

Let us have no illusions about them.
Their leader has told us bluntly — their
purpose is not alone to enslave us — they
want to bury us.

And while it is apparently true that
Chairman Khrushchev is content for the
time being at least to avoid war as a
means of communist expansion, there is
little doubt that the leaders of Red China
view war as inevitable and await only
the propitious moment in which to
strike.

What we face today is not just a cold
war, not just a struggle for the control
of land, sea, air, and even outer space,
but total competition for the control of
men's minds. Unless we meet it and de-
feat it, we shall almost inevitably one
day face the loss of all that we hold dear.

In less than half a century, I repeat,
this evil system has gained control over
one-third of mankind, and it is steadily
pursuing its vicious goal of control over
all the rest of the world. It is time, and
past time, for us to be alarmed. "Wo be
unto him that is at ease. Wo be unto him
that crieth 'all is well' " (2 Nephi 28:24-
25.)

Latin America does not believe that
suppression is the road to freedom.

Less than fifteen years ago commu-
nism was not a powerful force in Latin
America. Today, it is not only strongly

944

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

mandments; and that wicked one hath
power, as yet, over you, and this is the
cause of your affliction.

"And now a commandment I give
unto you — if you will be delivered you
shall set in order your own house, for
there are many things that are not
right in your house." (Ibid., 93:41-43.)

The Lord gave similar counsel and
admonition at this same time to other
of the brethren, after which he applied
the warning to all of us by saying:

"What I say unto one I say unto all;

pray always lest that wicked one have
power in you, and remove you out of
your place." (Ibid., 93:49.)

I earnestly pray, my brothers and
sisters, that we will not permit the things
of the world to lure us away into com-
placency and peaceful contentment and
cause us to fail in these important ob-
ligations imposed upon us by the Lord
in the teaching, training, and proper
upbringing of our children in the gospel
of Christ, which failure would cause
us to be removed out of our place and
our children to be denied those blessings

which they are entitled to receive from
us, their parents, to enrich their lives
here and hereafter.

God bless us to recognize the responsi-
bility and obligation we have to our
children. God bless us to understand
the gospel and to be able to teach it so
that our children will understand and
learn to love and desire to obey the
commandments that the Lord has given
for their guidance and their blessing.
This I humbly pray, in the name of
Jesus Christ. Amen.

present there as an enemy to be reckoned
with, it is openly allied with a govern-
ment located on an island only about
ninety miles south of Key West, Florida.

The only political party now function-
ing in Cuba is the Popular Socialist Par-
ty, the Communist Party under another
name.

Cuba is being used as a funnel through
which communists are infiltrating other
American republics.

True to communist and dictator tradi-
tion, the Cuban government has de-
prived its people of the rights of a free
press, free elections, and the protection
of other fundamental human rights.

And last August, even as the Organiza-
tion of American States met in San Jose,
Costa Rica, Fidel Castro was shouting
defiantly: "We shall be friends of the
Soviet Union and the People's Republic
of China."

How did this situation come about?
How has it been possible for this com-
pletely warped philosophy in such a
short time to reach its present position of
influence in the world? How is it possible
for communism to be here and now
moving into Africa, pressing upon all of
Asia, threatening the Middle East and
increasingly becoming a danger in the
western hemisphere?

There are, of course, many reasons.
Some nations have failed to provide for
the advancement and desperate physical
needs of their people. Others have railed
to recognize the worth of the individual.
But is it not perhaps true that the biggest
reason of all is the failure of western
civilization to live up to its Christian
ideals?

Is it perhaps true that, as Dr. Charles
Malik, the great Lebanese leader and
former President of the United Nations
General Assembly, has said,

"The deepest crisis of the West is the
crisis of faith. . . . Western civilization is
doomed until, jolted out of its compla-
cency, self-satisfaction and sense of
apartness, it rediscovers and reaffirms

what is genuinely human and universal
in its own soul"?

Let us examine our own lives and the
life of our own beloved land.

How richly we the people of the
United States have been blessed!

Truly ours is a choice land — a land of
great favors and opportunities. Yet is
it not true that these very blessings
could prove to be our undoing unless
our perspective is right and our idealism
more concerned with eternal standards
and values than with material gain and
worldly honors?

How does our nation stand?

Are not many of us materialistic? Do
we not find it well-nigh impossible to
raise our sights above the dollar sign?

Are not many of us pragmatists — liv-
ing not by principle but by what we can
get away with?

Are not many of us status-seekers—
measuring the worth of a man by the
size of his bank account, his house, his
automobile?

Are we not complacent, given to self-
satisfaction and self-congratulation —
willing to co-exist with evil ... so long
as it does not touch us personally?

If the answer to these questions is,
"yes" — and who can honestly give a dif-
ferent answer? — then surely these are
among the many reasons why this is
truly an era of peril.

Many of us have a tendency to forget
the Gracious Hand which has preserved
our nation, enriched it, strengthened it.
Many of us imagine in the foolishness
of pride, that our manifold blessings are
due not to God's goodness, but to our
own wisdom and virtue. Too many of
us have been so drunk with self-suffi-
ciency as no longer to feel the need of
prayer. Too many have forgotten the
necessity of courage, of sacrifice, of vigi-
lance, of devotion to the cause of free-
dom.

We must revivify Western ideals and
in particular the ideals of our own great
nation. We must call back the spirit of

the dauntless leaders of the past. We
must meet our present-day challenge not
with softness and complacency, but with
the depth, wisdom, and daring that char-
acterized America in the days of old.

We have a rich history to guide us.
Think back with me a moment to the
year 1823. In that year James Monroe
of Virginia was President. John Quincy
Adams of Massachusetts was Secretary
of State. These two men formed and
announced a policy which has pro-
foundly influenced the development of
our entire hemisphere.

Here was the situation that called
forth this policy — known as the Monroe
Doctrine— in 1823.

Several of what are now the Latin
American Republics had by force of
arms newly won their independence
from Spain and Portugal. Among them
were Colombia, Mexico, Chile, and
Brazil.

Meantime, a number of the sovereigns
of Europe were seeking to enforce the
"divine right of kings" with the express
purpose of putting "an end to the sys-
tem of representative government."

France, accordingly, had proceeded to
restore the rule of Ferdinand VII in
Spain. Now these countries proposed to
overthrow the new and independent gov-
ernments in Latin America.

This our government refused to per-
mit. It said so plainly in the celebrated
Monroe Doctrine. The heart of the
Monroe Doctrine consisted of these
words: ". . . the American continents, by
the free and independent condition
which they have assumed and main-
tained, are henceforth not to be consid-
ered as subjects for future colonization
by any European power."

And the doctrine went on to spell out
clearly just what was meant.

"The political system of the allied
powers is essentially different . . . from
that of America. . . . We owe it, there-
fore, to candor, and to the amicable re-
lations existing between the United

DECEMBER 1960

945

States and those powers, to declare that
we should consider any attempt on their
part to extend their system to any por-
tion of this hemisphere as dangerous to
our peace and safety."

Now there is a statement which might
well be engraved in all the capitals of
all the countries in this hemisphere to-
day. Every word in it is as applicable
today as it was one hundred thirty-seven
years ago.

Surely if it were true a century and
a half ago that European monarchy was
essentially different from our American
system of representative government, it
is even more true today that the com-
munist system is totally different, totally
incompatible, totally inimical to our free
way of life.

The ancient American Prophet Moroni
saw our day. Who can doubt that he had
in mind the evils of godless communism
when he gave this solemn warning:

"Wherefore, O ye Gentiles, it is wis-
dom in God that these things should be
shown unto you, that thereby ye may re-
pent of your sins, and suffer not that
these murderous combinations shall get
above you, which are built up to get
power and gain — and the work, yea, even
the work of destruction come upon you,
yea, even the sword of the justice of the
Eternal God shall fall upon you, to your
overthrow and destruction if ye shall
suffer these things to be.

"Wherefore, the Lord commandeth
you, when ye shall see these things come
among you that ye shall awake to a
sense of your awful situation, because
of this secret combination which shall
be among you; or wo be unto it, because

of the blood of them who have been
slain; for they cry from the dust for
vengeance upon it, and also upon those
who built it up.

"For it cometh to pass that whoso
buildeth it up seeketh to overthrow the
freedom of all lands, nations, and coun-
tries; and it bringeth to pass the destruc-
tion of all people, for it is built up by
the devil, who is the father of all lies."

(Ether 8:23-25.)

We are eminently justified in declar-
ing that we should consider any attempt
on the part of the communists to extend
their system to any part of this hemis-
phere as dangerous to our peace and
safety.

President Eisenhower said as much in
his reply to the tirade of Chairman
Khrushchev last summer. But it is not
enough to say this once, nor is it enough
for the President alone to say it. It
should be repeated again and again and
again, and it should be supported by all
true Americans speaking as with one
voice.

Moreover, the Monroe Doctrine went
on: "Nor can anyone believe that our
southern brethren if left to themselves,
would adopt it [this system] of their own
accord." Here again the words of the
Monroe Doctrine ring true.

It is almost unthinkable that any
people would knowingly and wilfully
take on themselves the yoke of commu-
nist oppression. No people, no nation,
has ever done so yet. If large masses of
the Cuban people have done so, it is be-
cause they have been duped or coerced.

This Monroe Doctrine has been the
continuing policy of our nation for al-

most a century and a half.

It has been reaffirmed by many Ameri-
can Presidents.

We are on solid, traditional American
ground in demanding that the commu-
nists should not attempt to extend their
political system to this side of the At-
lantic Ocean.

In recent years the principles of the
Monroe Doctrine have been strengthened
by various joint agreements among the
American nations.

In 1947, nineteen American nations
met in conference in Rio de Janeiro, and
on September 2 of that year signed the
treaty of Rio de Janeiro in which they
promised to help one another in case of
aggression.

On March 1, 1954, the tenth Inter-
American Conference opened in Caracas,
Venezuela. When we read now, six
years later, the running account of that
conference, it is almost as though we
were scanning a preview of history. On
March 4, for example, our late great
Secretary of State, John Foster Dulles,
urged the American states to stop the
communists now.

On March 6, the United States
presented a draft resolution condemning
communism as foreign intervention and
calling for joint action against it when
needed.

On March 13, 1954, the conference
adopted by a vote of 17 to 1 the anti-
communist resolution that had been
presented by the United States. Guate-
mala dissented, and Mexico and Argen-
tina abstained.

Referring to the Caracas conference,
President Eisenhower said, "In this

TO MAGNIFY

THE

PRIESTHOOD

Antoine R. Ivins

of the First Council of the Seventy

My brothers and sisters, I had given up
the expectancy of having this privilege

of bearing my testimony to you this
afternoon, and I haven't the courage to
take time to make an extended speech
or any extensive remarks. I trust that
the Spirit of God may help me to bear
a true testimony to the truth of the
gospel, and when I say testimony, which
seems to be the spirit of this conference,
I mean that I testify that Jesus Christ is
the Son of God; that he and the Father
appeared to the Prophet Joseph Smith;
that through the visitation of heavenly
beings and the inspiration that came
from God, a real and true interpretation
of the plan of life and salvation was re-
turned to the earth; that through heav-
enly beings there came back to the earth
the priesthood which authorized men to
perform the functions that are essential
to the exaltation of people in the king-
dom of God; and that to regulate the
use of that priesthood the Church was
set up according to the will of God and

the pattern which Jesus Christ gave us
when he ministered in the earth.

That I honestly and sincerely believe
to be true, and I feel that the fact of its
truth has been revealed to me by the
Spirit of God. The spirit of this con-
ference has been testimony. Christ told
Peter that upon the revealed testimony
that He is the Son of God, he had built
his Church, and the gates of hell could
not prevail against it.

I honestly believe, brethren and sis-
ters, that if we can properly instil into
our own hearts and the hearts of our
children this testimony to the degree
that it will impel them to live true to
the principles of the gospel, to the cove-
nants that they have made in the waters
of baptism and in the temples of God,
and to the promises that are implied,
if not actually made, when one receives
the priesthood, that the Church will
never be in danger.

946

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

hemisphere we have stressed our solid
understanding with our American neigh-
bors. . . . The American republics agreed
that if international communism were
to gain control of the political institu-
tion of any American state, this control
would endanger them all and therefore
would demand collective action."

Very shortly after the close of the Car-
acas conference such a communist threat
arose in Guatemala. The pro-communist
government of Guatemala, aided by
shipments of arms from behind the Iron
Curtain, had moved very rapidly to the
left. The Organization of American
States had already convoked a meeting
of foreign ministers under the Rio
Treaty to consider the serious situation
which had developed, when the Guate-
malans themselves rose up and removed
the threat. The meeting never convened.
Fighting broke out in Guatemala, and
the communist government was over-
thrown.

All this was before the coming to pow-
er of the present leadership in Cuba.
Now the Western Hemisphere faces a
new danger — a new threat.

Our government is alert to the situa-
tion. The Organization of American
States has condemned Russian-Chinese
interference in American affairs. These
are first steps.

But we must do more. As a nation we
must cease to take Latin American se-
curity for granted. We must lead this
hemisphere in stimulating and co-operat-
ing in a program of Latin American eco-
nomic development.

But even this is not enough. You and
I and all true Americans must play our

part, too.

What can you and I do? What can
we do to help meet this grave challenge
from a godless, atheistic, cruelly mate-
rialistic system — to preserve our God-
given free way of life?

We can encourage our government to
stand firm at all costs against any fur-
ther expansion of communism into the
free world.

We can tell our government that we
are willing to sacrifice our luxuries in
exchange for an impregnable defense.

We can support our government in
keeping the flame of freedom burning in
the souls of the oppressed — wherever
they may be throughout the world.

But, above all, we can face up to the
decay in our own civilization.

The communists bring to the nations
they infiltrate a message and a philos-
ophy that affects human life in its en-
tirety. Communism seeks to provide,
what in too many instances a lukewarm
Christianity has not provided, a total
interpretation of life. Communists are
willing to be revolutionary; to take a
stand for this and against that. They
challenge what they do not believe in —
customs, practices, ideas, traditions. They
believe heatedly in their philosophy.

But our civilization and our people
are seemingly afraid to be revolutionary.
We are too "broadminded" to challenge
what we do not believe in. We are
afraid of being thought intolerant, un-
couth, ungentlemanly. We have become
lukewarm in our beliefs. And for that
we perhaps merit the bitter condemna-
tion stated in Revelation 3:16: "So then
because thou art lukewarm, and neither

cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of
my mouth."

This is a sad commentary on a civiliza-
tion which has given to mankind the
greatest achievements and progress ever
known. But it is an even sadder com-
mentary on those of us who call our-
selves Christians, who thus betray the
ideals given to us by the Son of God
himself.

Let us awaken to our responsibilities
and to our opportunities. Again I quote
Dr. Malik:

"The civilization which has been
blessed and transformed by Christ, needs
only a mighty hand to shake it out of
its slumber. And, once shaken, once
really awakened to the world responsi-
bilities which it and it alone can shoul-
der, there is nothing it cannot dare and
do."

Do we believe that? Then let us live
up to that faith! For in that faith — and
through that faith — we can rise trium-
phant over the menace of atheistic com-
munism. We can and we must!

In this dark hour, the fate of the world
seems to rest largely in our hands. We
who live in this choice land, in fact all
of the land of Zion, have the opportu-
nity, the responsibility, and the solemn
obligation to stand firm for freedom and
justice and morality — the dignity and
brotherhood of man as a child of God.

". . . wo be unto him that is at ease
in Zion!

"Wo be unto him that crieth: All is
well!" (2 Nephi 28:24-25.)

God bless the land of Zion, North and
South America, and all the world, I pray
in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

The power of the Church is in the
administration of the priesthood offices,
of course, and in the faith that the
people have. I believe that testimony
comes from faith and prayer and right-
eous living, and that the best way to
get it is to live true to the teachings of
the gospel, to pray about it, and to exer-
cise our faith to that end. And then I
believe further that if we can get that
testimony truly in our hearts, that all
men who accept ordination into the
Melchizedek Priesthood or the Aaronic
Priesthood for that matter, will exert
every possible power within them to
magnify that calling. There is not the
least doubt in my mind that any man
who holds the Melchizedek Priesthood,
who lives to magnify that calling, should
never yield to any of the temptations of
his satanic majesty.

I feel that whenever men give way to
those temptations, it is an indication of

really either a weak testimony or a lack
of testimony of these wonderful things.
We who hold the priesthood have the
problem of planting that testimony in
the hearts of others. We do it by the
way we live and by what we teach.

I heard a testimony just a week ago
from a very fine man who has recently
come into the Church. He was first
impressed by the life of certain mem-
bers of the Church whom he met. He
became interested and investigated. He
had a son fourteen years of age who
likewise was interested in the mission-
aries and attended their meetings in the
branch. The son came home one day
and to the utter surprise of his father
said, "Father, I have a testimony," and
this man said, "Now in our church
nobody ever testifies."

It is in Christianity a forgotten art
practically, but with us it is the most
essential thing of our whole program,

brothers and sisters, that we should gain
that testimony; that we should live true
to it, and that when we accept re-
sponsibility in the priesthood we should
magnify it.

Now we who keep records know that
there is a large percentage of men who
have been ordained to the Melchizedek
Priesthood who are not magnifying their
callings. We have a program, brothers
and sisters, that we have been advocating
for sometime, to which reference was
made today, to try to interest those
people and bring them to pray and study
that they may come to understand these
things and then go forth to reclaim
their privileges as members of the Mel-
chizedek Priesthood.

Of course there is plenty of incentive
for it. To those of you who were here
last night I recommend again the pas-
sages in the Doctrine and Covenants
that Brother Romney read to you, that

DECEMBER 1960

947

he who receives these callings in the
priesthood and magnifies them fully can
eventually attain to the powers of God.
That is the incentive, brothers and sis-
ters. When we go to these people, we

must go in love and kindness, helpful own problems, understand that the

as we can in the hope that they will privileges of membership in the Church

listen to us. of Jesus Christ are individual privileges,

I pray that God will bless us that and that no man should let the conduct

we may understand individually our of another man prevent his using these

SECRETLY

DISCIPLE?

Howard W. Hunter

of the Council of the Twelve

In the nineteenth chapter of John we
read the story of an influential man who
was secretly a disciple of Christ, but
because of fear, was not openly a dis-
ciple. Those who declared themselves
as followers of Christ were not popular
in Jerusalem during this period of con-
troversy. Joseph of Arimathea was se-
cretly a disciple, but his fear of what
others might think or do prevented him
from declaring his allegiance until after
the crucifixion of the Master.

Joseph of Arimathea was a man of
wealth and station in Jerusalem. We
can assume that he had a wide acquaint-
ance and was a man of influence. He
was a member of the Sanhedrin, the
assembly of seventy-one men constitut-
ing the supreme council of the aris-
tocracy which administered the Jewish
law. It was because of his membership
in this tribunal that he was referred
to as "counsellor." Mark refers to him
as ". . . an honourable counsellor, which
also waited for the kingdom of God, . . ."

(Mark 15:43.) He waited in the back-
ground, doing nothing to support or
sustain the Master. No doubt he had
heard Jesus and listened to his teachings,
for we are told that he was a secret
disciple of the Savior.

When the council was called into
session early in the morning, following
the Last Supper and the betrayal, Joseph
either absented himself from the council
or refused to vote. He took no part in the
proceedings, hoping no doubt to save
his own conscience. He would not lift
a finger to condemn the Savior, nor
would he defend him openly.

There are many like Joseph of Ari-
mathea, who do not declare loyalty to
the Lord Jesus Christ, but merely "wait
for the kingdom." Like Joseph they are
secret followers of Jesus and halfhearted,
lukewarm Christians. Secret disciples of
Christ are almost in the same category
as those who are antagonistic. They are
much the same as persons among us
today who have only a halfhearted in-
terest in our great democratic way of
life and are as dangerous to the future
freedom of the world as those who are
openly avowed to destroy democracy.

We would have greater respect for
Joseph, if he had taken a strong position
in the council and defended Jesus. We
cannot assume that this would have
changed the judgment or saved him
from the cross, because he stated at the
supper that he would shortly leave them.
Nevertheless, we have respect for one
who stands upon moral convictions and
upholds the right.

We have more respect for one who
honestly doubts than for one who fears
to declare loyalty. Thomas doubted. He
traveled the path from faith through the
'"valley of doubt to new heights of faith.
This is the course that many follow in
life. As children we accepted as fact
the things which were told to us by our
parents or our teachers because of the
confidence that we had in them. A
little boy will jump from a high place
without fear if his father tells him that
he will catch him. The little fellow has
faith that his father will not let him
fall. As children grow older, they com-
mence to think for themselves, to ques-
tion and have doubts about those things
which are not subject to tangible proof.
I have sympathy for young men and
young women when honest doubts enter
their minds and they engage in the great
conflict of resolving doubts. These
doubts can be resolved, if they have an
honest desire to know the truth, by
exercising moral, spiritual, and mental
effort. They will emerge from the con-
flict into a firmer, stronger, larger faith
because of the struggle. They have gone
from a simple, trusting faith, through
doubt and conflict, into a solid substan-
tial faith which ripens into testimony.
The Bible is replete with such examples.
We think of Abraham in the Old Testa-
ment and Thomas in Christ's time.

Now to return to Joseph of Arima-
thea, the record does not indicate to us
that he doubted as did Thomas. We
are told he was "... a disciple of Jesus,
but secretly for fear. . . ." (John 19:38.)

THE DESTINY
OF THIS
CHURCH

Alma Sonne

Assistant to the Council of the Twelve

My brethren and sisters, I believe I
speak for the Assistants to the Quorum
of the Twelve when I express my good-

will and my good feelings towards the
three men who have been called to
associate with us in our work. I know
these men personally. I know they are
good men. I know they are capable,
and I know, too, their willingness to
lay upon the altar any worldly posses-
sions they have in order to serve the
Lord in spirit and in truth.

I believe in the future of the Church.
I believe it has a great destiny. I believe
in its moral standards. I believe its pro-
gram is effective and the Church will
grow and develop as the missionary ef-
fort increases in the world. I believe
faith in God is the very foundation of

right living, and I believe in the mis-
sionary system of the Church, which has
proved so successful in recent years, and
I believe the work will continue to go
forward.

I also believe that many of the old
barriers and obstacles are crumbling and
giving way, and that we have a better
opportunity than we have ever had to
proclaim the gospel truths. I believe
there are people in the world who are
very anxious to hear the gospel message
as it is proclaimed by humble men and
women sent out from the headquarters
of the Church to bear their testimonies.

I want to read a word from President

948

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

privileges to his own exaltation. If observe at times would have no effect and helping the many people who are

people who come into the Church could upon their lives. being baptized into the Church. May

come understanding that it is an indi- Brethren and sisters, we have the God help us to do all these things, I

vidual problem pure and simple with problem not only of our own people, pray in the name of Jesus Christ, our

them, then these other things that they but also of assimilating and absorbing Redeemer. Amen.

He believed secretly because he was
afraid of public opinion. Among our
own people, in our communities, in our
nation and throughout the world, there
are secret followers of Jesus and half-
hearted Christians — onlookers who have
a noncommittal attitude. Why is it that
so many will not commit themselves?

Joseph of Arimathea was only a secret
disciple because of what others would
think of him. He would not risk his
social position nor the respect of his as-
sociates. It is fear that causes men to
be noncommittal. They are afraid to
declare their loyalty and assume active
responsibility. The easy way is to let
someone else be the leader and assume
the responsibility. The world needs men
who are willing to step forward and de-
clare themselves. The world needs men
who will lift the load of responsibility
to their shoulders and carry it high un-
der the banner of Jesus Christ — men
who are willing to defend the right
openly. I am always impressed by the
missionaries of this Church. They are
willing to accept the call to serve two
years or more at their own expense and
give freely of their time without mone-
tary compensation, to cry repentance
and declare that Jesus is the Christ.
This is the type of devotion to principle
that is needed in the world today.

How can men of conscience ignore the
teachings of the Master in their daily
affairs, in business, or in government?
We stand by and wink at many things
because we fear to do anything about
them. We may be against crime or com-

munism, but what do we do about it?
We may be against corruption in govern-
ment or against juvenile delinquency,
but what do we do about it? We may
have a belief in the gospel of Jesus
Christ, but what are we doing about it?
We need to push fear into the back-
ground and come forward with a defi-
nite, positive declaration, and assume
responsibility.

The pathway to exaltation is well de-
fined. We are told to have faith — faith
in the Lord Jesus Christ, and repent of
those things which are not according to
his teachings. After this change of men-
tal attitude, and with firm resolution,
we must declare ourselves by going into
the waters of baptism, thereby making
a covenant with the Lord to keep his
commandments. Can we thereafter be
a secret disciple? Can we stand on the
sidelines and merely observe? This is a
day for action. This is the time for de-
cision, not tomorrow, not next week.
This is the time to make our covenant
with the Lord. Now is the time for
those who have been noncommittal or
who have had a halfhearted interest to
come out boldly and declare belief in
Christ and be willing to demonstrate
faith by works.

We acquire more regard for Joseph of
Arimathea as we continue to read. Al-
though he was "a disciple of Jesus, but
secretly for fear . . ." and although he
was one who "waited for the kingdom
of God," yet he was finally moved to
action. The account continues:

"He went to Pilate, and begged the

body of Jesus. Then Pilate commanded
the body to be delivered.

"And when Joseph had taken the
body, he wrapped it in a clean linen
cloth,

"And laid it in his own new tomb,
which he had hewn out in the rock:
and he rolled a great stone to the door
of the sepulchre, and departed." (Matt.
27:58-60.)

I wonder if there was not a tear in
Joseph's eye as he placed the body of
Jesus in the tomb. Surely he thought of
the events which had taken place earlier
on that day, when as a member of the
Council he had failed to come to the
defense of the Master. Should we not
search our own souls and inquire of
ourselves if we are loyal? Are we, too,
only secret disciples of Christ?

This same Jesus who died on the cross
and whose body was placed in the tomb
came forth on the third day thereafter.
He was resurrected and lives today — the
Savior of the world.

This is my witness. He stands before
us with arms outstretched to our vision,
and those same words spoken to the
disciples in Jerusalem should ring in our
ears:

"If any man will come after me, let
him deny himself, and take up his cross,
and follow me.

"For whosoever will save his life shall
lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for
my sake shall find it." (Ibid., 16:24-25.)

May we be his disciples openly, fear-
lessly, and with devotion, I humbly pray
in his name. Amen.

Brigham Young. He said:

"The Lord will never suffer this people
to dwindle down, and be hid up in a
corner; it cannot be; neither does he
want any person to help them but him-
self." (Discourses of Brigham Young, p.
676.)

In other words, God is directing his
work. It is not man-made, neither is it
the creation of a human mind. The
pioneer prophet Brigham Young was
face to face with a gigantic task when
he undertook to colonize the West and
to keep alive the missionary movement.
It was not an easy thing to set up a
commonwealth and to transform a des-

ert into cities, towns, and villages, and
to provide homes, schools, and churches.
It required more than ordinary skill to
build up faith and hope and to develop
a solid citizenship out of a people who
came from many parts of the world.

Brigham Young could not have done
it without God's help. He knew this,
and never once did he claim the credit
for this achievement. When he died in
1877, his enemies saw the end of Mor-
monism. There was no one, they argued,
to take his place. He had presided over
the Church for thirty years. Those who
had stood by him in the early emergen-
cies and difficulties had passed on.

Willard Richards had died in 1854.
Heber C. Kimball, the great prophet,
and a stalwart, who had stood by his
side in all the days of colonization and
settlement, had died in 1868. Parley P.
Pratt had met an untimely death in
1857. George A. Smith, who was re-
garded as a great leader of courage and
wisdom, had died in 1875. And many
others who stood valiantly by his side
during the exodus and the colonization
effort, also had passed on. Mormonism
could not survive, at least that was the
verdict of those who did not and could
not understand. There was no leader,
they claimed, to take his place. They

BECEMBER 1960

949

saw the disruption and disorganization
of the Church, and many would repudi-
ate their allegiance and follow a divided
leadership.

The enemies predicted the same thing
when the Prophet Joseph and his broth-
er Hyrum Smith were murdered. The
great enterprise launched by them, they
thought, would burst like a bubble, but
God will always have in reserve some-
one to take the place of him wh© is

gone. Brethren and sisters, God's work
will triumph in the earth.

Speaking of pioneer days, I should
like to read a statement from the journal
of Brother Richard Ballantyne, the or-
ganizer of the first Sunday School in the
Rocky Mountains. Brother Ballantyne
wrote this just five years before his death.
Speaking of pioneering days, he said:

"But those times are now past, and I
believe never to return. A brighter day

is now awaiting, but it will have its
dangers.

"As wealth flows into the hands of the
Church, and with its learning and re-
finement, pride is apt to enter the hearts
of the children of Zion, as it entered
into the hearts of the Nephites.

"God has signified by his servant that
the day to favor Zion has come. The
powers of the heavens are to be exerted
in a way they never were before. The

ETERNAL
OPPORTUNITIES

Richard L. Evans

of the Council of the Twelve

At this point of the conference many
will understand why I remember a
sentence recently read — a sentence which
said that you can always use more
words to say what has already been said.
I shall try not to make the words too
many, but should like to tie back to
two or three points of the conference,
first, to President McKay's opening ad-
dress, of the love of God and the love
of man, and of the peace that can come
only through righteousness and the keep-
ing of the commandments.

Secondly, from the reports given from
this pulpit and others that have come in
connection with the conference it is very
evident that the Church in the stakes
and in the missions is on the move,

worldwide. Now it takes service, and it
takes means to keep things on the move.
I have read somewhere that service is
the rent we pay for the space we occupy
on earth. Not only the service, but the
means are necessary. Nothing does it-
self. Someone has to do everything that
is done.

As to tithing, it requires that, too, not
only as a material matter, but as a spirit-
ual matter also. All we have the Lord
God has given us, and I consider tithing
to be an opportunity to express apprecia-
tion for what the Lord God has given.
Neither the giving of service nor of sub-
stance is ever — or seldom — completely
convenient for any of us. There was
a kind of tongue-in-cheek British

NEED FOR A
SPIRITUAL
SURVIVAL KIT

John Longden

Assistant to the Council of the Ttvelve

While I was on my mission, we had a
great mission president, Samuel O. Ben-
nion, who made us conscious of time.
He called several conferences of two
districts of missionaries into the city of
Enoch — that is in Texas, by the way —
and he would give each of us an oppor-
tunity to speak. As we approached the

pulpit, he would say to each one, "Take
five minutes and preach the gospel."
From this and other training I have
been made conscious of time, and I am
grateful for it. I know there are others
today who have not had this privilege,
and I should like to share some of my
time with them.

May I give you one or two thoughts
as I bear my testimony of the divinity
of this marvelous work?

Recently there have been many edi-
torials in newspapers, magazines, radio
and TV discussions, also private conver-
sations, in which I have noticed one
particular word being used many times.
That word is "survival." Survival! Sur-
vival from what? an atomic bomb?
survival from the "C" or "H" bomb?
survival from a Marx, Hitler, Mussolini,
or a Khrushchev, or their satanic teach-
ings and practices — or another kind of
survival?

The United States military services
are most anxious to assist their person-
nel to survive, and tests to prolong mor-

tal life are being made continually with
various kinds of so-called survival kits.
Last July I was interested in the story
told by a young man in our city who
had made such a test with a survival
kit measuring 9x/4 inches by 6 inches by
3V2 inches. The test was made in the
rough Wind River range country of
Wyoming. He had been flown into this
area by plane and then dropped by
parachute with the survival kit men-
tioned. Here are some of the items it
contained: a full fifteen-day supply of
food, first-aid kit, sewing kit, fire start-
ing kit, fishing items, knife and stone;
a twenty-foot line of nylon cord, and a
book teaching its reader how to survive.
Much research had been done on all
items contained in the kit. During the
test no one heard from this young man
for two weeks. I listened to his story
in fast and testimony meeting and after-
wards in private. He said, most impor-
tant of all in the time he had spent in
solitude in the great outdoors was that
he had come to understand and appre-

950

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

time for the uplifting of Zion has come.
Kings and rulers will favor her. Her
beauty and righteousness are beginning
to appear in the world. She will not be
looked upon as she has been in the past.
The shadows are passing away, and the
light is breaking in upon us."

I bear my testimony that God's work
will stand, that Joseph Smith was his
divine Prophet appointed to usher in
the Dispensation of the Fulness of Times.

I bear testimony that his successors in
the high office were all men of God,
and that they were full of faith and
prophecy. I bear testimony that the
authority of the Holy Priesthood is
operating in the Church as it has al-
ways done and that it will continue to
do so until every knee shall bend and
every tongue confess that Jesus is the
Christ, the Savior of the world, and that
the Latter-day Saints comprise his

Church and kingdom about which the
ancient prophets spoke; and that the
Church will continue to grow and ex-
tend itself, even beyond our imagina-
tions, for it will surely reach to the
uttermost parts of the earth.

I pray that his Spirit may continue
with us, and that we may serve him
always with a singleness of purpose, in
the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

economist lecturing here some months
ago — and may be still in the United
States — who propounded what he called
''Parkinson's Second Law," as I recall,
which said that "expenditures always
r|se to meet income." We have dis-
covered this to be true.
| The Lord God has said to us ". . . all
things unto me are spiritual, and not
at any time have I given unto you a law
which was temporal; . . ." (D&C 29:34.)
I would plead with all of us, as the work
moves forward gloriously, that we should
not hinder it by withholding our service
or our substance.

Now, third, I should like to tie back
to what I consider a most remarkable
meeting last evening, which I wish
everyone had heard, as President McKay

and Brother Moyle and Brother Romney
and Brother Petersen spoke. I should
like to make a plea in keeping with
some of what was there said to the youth,
and to all of us, that we do not suc-
cumb to uncertainty. There are prob-
lems; there are uncertainties; but always
we need to pursue solid purposes.

The Church is going forward, world-
wide— in the building of buildings,- in
missionary endeavor, and in all else —
and in our private and personal lives,
young and old, we must also individual-
ly have the faith to go forward. It takes
courage; it takes prayer and planning
and work and faith; but there are
glorious eternal opportunities; and we
must not wait in uncertainty or suc-
cumb to it. The theories and the facts

will all ultimately be reconciled; the
questions will all ultimately be an-
swered; the problems will all ultimately
be resolved; and the promises will all
be fulfilled, and we must plan and
prayerfully pursue our plans and go
ahead with our lives on solid and firm
foundations, with faith, with cleanli-
ness of conduct, with balanced living,
with devotion, with the keeping of the
commandments.

I think it was Ruskin who said, "There
is no wealth but life." I pray God that
we may use that wealth which is life,
and not waste it away, and pursue
earnestly the opportunities of time, into
the limitless promises and possibilities
of eternity, and I do it in the name of
the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

date more than ever the blessings of the
gospel; to be alone under the stars at
hight, to see the sunshine of the day,
the beauty of nature at its best, the
natural resources provided by God our
Heavenly Father and his Son Jesus
Christ. There had come into his heart
and soul that testimony more important
and precious than all else, the need of
a spiritual survival.

We may survive physically and ma-
terially but unless we survive spiritually
these things avail nothing.

I believe this has been the theme of
this conference from the stirring, open-
ing address of President McKay to the
splendid remarks of Brother Richard L.
Evans, just preceding me. I have caught
this spirit through the glorious sessions
of this conference, receiving reassurance
again that this is the Church of Jesus
Christ, not the church of any man- — a
Church which offers to all men a spir-
itual survival, the opportunity to subdue
the earth and overcome all things for-
eign to enjoying the Spirit of the Lord.

The survival kit for spiritual survival is
equally as small as the one used for
physical survival; let me suggest its size:
just four books, the Bible, Book of Mor-
mon, Doctrine and Covenants, and Pearl
of Great Price — the small editions even
smaller than 9% inches by 6 inches by
3Yo inches, but what power they con-
tain!

Just before the commencement of this
afternoon's meeting I met several breth-
ren from Hawaii, one of whom I had
not seen for five and a half years at
which time I toured the Hawaiian
Mission, Brother William (Bill) Sproat,
a faithful dedicated Latter-day Saint,
one who truly believes in spiritual sur-
vival. I shall always remember being in
your home away up there on the peak,
the highline that you ride to do your
work, the hospitality that you extended
to us, the depth of your testimony, the
sincerity of your labors to build the
kingdom of God, and what you said to
me today will always live in my mem-
ory: "Oh, this is a dream I never realized

would be fulfilled to be here in Salt
Lake City attending a general confer-
ence." Brother Sproat, one of the many
thousand wonderful, dedicated Latter-
day Saints who live by the precepts of
his spiritual survival kit!

Some of us who live so close to the
pattern might not appreciate the design.
I saw the beautiful design of spiritual
survival at work today as I had the
opportunity of embracing you, Brother
Bill, and others from those glorious
islands of the Pacific.

God bless us that we may survive
spiritually; that we may appreciate the
necessity of keeping our survival kits
complete, tested, and in order constant-
ly, which should include the Lord's
word on how to survive contained in
the four standard works of the Church,
for therein are embodied the way, the
truth, and the light of which President
J. Reuben Clark, Jr., spoke this morning.

God help us so to do, I humbly pray
in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ,
our Savior. Amen.

DECEMBER I960

951

ETERNAL
ASSOCIATION
OF THE
FAMILY

EIRay L. Christiansen

Assistant to the Council of the Twelve

I should like to place what I had
thought to say in cold storage, even
though by the time I take it out it will
be too cold to use, and just express my
gratitude and appreciation for some
things.

I like the song, "Now, Let Us Rejoice."
In my opinion we do not rejoice enough
in this Church. We have so much
for which to be grateful that we could
rejoice day and night and still not be
sufficiently grateful in our expressions.
I am so thankful for what has been
taught us in this great conference today
and yesterday and the day before. I
think it has been outstanding. I thought
as I sat here how true it is that we
cannot be saved in ignorance of God, in
ignorance of our relationship to God —
and I thought that as members of this
Church we need not be in ignorance, so
far as knowledge of our relationship to
God is concerned, for surely we are
well taught.

There is no prize so great and so val-
uable as the truth. In the Church we

are taught the truth. We are taught
the proper way to live — the correct, the
right, the happy way to live. We could
search the world over, and we could find
no better way to live than the right way,
and of course the Lord's way is the
right way.

We are taught to know the right in
all things — how to repent, how to change
our ways. We are taught whom and
how to serve. We are taught the proper
way to enter into the marriage cove-
nant. In fact, the gospel of Jesus Christ
is designed to direct us safely through
this probationary period, that we "may
dwell ... in a state of never-ending
happiness" (Mosiah 2:41) with those
we love. I like that statement from the
Book of Mormon.

We are taught. that in the true sense
of the word, God is our Father; that we
are his sons and his daughters, and that
he loves us, and that he is concerned
about our welfare and our fortunes and
our misfortunes. He is desirous that when
this earth mission is completed that
each of us comes home with an honor-
able release from it to dwell with him
in a state of happiness and usefulness.

I am not so interested in heaven unless
I may continue my association with
those I love, and that is all of you, my
brothers and sisters, but especially my
companion, my children, my grandchil-
dren, and my progenitors.

I am grateful to belong to a Church
that teaches that the relationship
between the husband and the wife, be-
tween the father and the mother, and
between the children and the parents, is
intended to be and is eternal in its
nature, if we will just prepare for that
type of relationship. No principle, doc-
trine, or practice is so distinctive or so
appealing to the human reason as is the

perpetuity of the family. The more I
think about the gospel the more I see
that it revolves about the family and its
eternal association.

When I went home at noon, I picked
up a letter from a boy written in his
own handwriting. He is eleven years
old.

(As you know, in the temple the op-
portunity is given to place names of
those who are ill or afflicted on a roll
where they are remembered in our
prayers.) The letter reads:

"Dear Temple Worker: Will you
please enter my dad's name on the
prayer roll because we want him to be-
come a member of the Church and
take Mom and us kids to the temple.
We sincerely hope and pray that our
Heavenly Father will help him to keep
the Word of Wisdom. His name is

Sincerely your brother,

., 11 years old."

That tells the story of what is in the
heart of a boy who loves his parents,
who loves them enough to desire their
association beyond this earth life. Some-
times the children must lead the parents
on the way.

I am grateful that my Father in heaven
is a patient Father. If he will stay with
me, I am determined to stay with him,
to stay with that which is true to the
end of my days.

God bless us, brothers and sisters,
that we may rejoice; that we may receive
thankfully; that we may live worthy of
the bounteous blessings that God ex-
tends to us, that we will share with our
nonmember friends the truth as it has
been revealed; and that we may bear
testimony, not alone in words, but in
deeds and in action and in doing good
to others, I pray humbly in the name of
Jesus Christ. Amen.

IT HAS

BEEN

GLORIOUS

President David O. McKay

We must take time before the closing
song and benediction to express a word
of appreciation to those who have con-
tributed to the success and comfort of
those who have attended this great con-
ference. I wish first to mention the
officers of this city who have watched
with care the number of automobiles
and their occupants and guided so suc-
cessfully the hundreds of cars and taken
care of the thousands of people who
have surrounded the block and driven
to and fro. You have noticed them on
every corner — their courtesy, their atten-
tion, their protecting and guiding care,
and in your behalf, in behalf of the
General Authorities particularly, I ex-
press thanks to the city government, and
to the police who have protected your
interests so carefully and so ably.

To the General Authorities we ex-
press deep appreciation for the inspira-
tional messages they have given us.
We haven't had any better. The Lord
has guided us from this pulpit during
our sessions in the daytime and last
evening.

We must not be unmindful of the
reporters for their fair and accurate
reports through our sessions of this con-
ference. They have been here daily
and given to the people, to their sub-
scribers, and to the world a very accurate
report, not only in word, but in the
spirit of the messages given at this
conference.

The fire department and the Red
Cross have been on hand to render
assistance and service whenever or
wherever needed. The Tabernacle ushers

952

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

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DECEMBER 1960

953

have rendered service in seating the
vast audiences of these conference ses-
sions. We have expressed before, but
repeat, our appreciation to the radio
and television stations — forty-five tele-
vision and sixty-two radio stations
throughout our own city and the nation
have carried the proceedings of this
conference. This has been the means
of permitting untold thousands of per-
sons to hear the sermons given during
the one hundred thirtieth semi-annual
conference. They have rendered that
service free.

We appreciate especially those who
have furnished the singing throughout
the conference. I remind you again of
the Relief Society Singing Mothers from
the Ogden and northern Utah regions,
who furnished the singing for the Fri-
day morning and Friday afternoon ses-
sions; also the University of Utah
Choral Society and the Bonneville
Strings — the singers from the Institute
of Religion and the University of Utah
choral groups, who furnished the sing-
ing for the Saturday morning and Sat-
urday afternoon sessions. Both those
sessions were inspirational. Think of
the hours that the mothers spend prac-
tising, and think of those young people,
of the hours and hours that they prac-
tised, and of their willingness to come
and give their talents so impressively.
And then last evening, the male mem-
bers of the Tabernacle Choir came in a
body, dressed neatly, in a dignified way,
and impressed the fifty thousand priest-
hood members of the Church with their
excellent singing.

Today we are privileged to have the
Tabernacle Choir! Words cannot ex-
press our heartfelt feelings for their
devotion to the cause. I met one sister
the other day who was a member for
many years, but she has retired. Her
heart was just overflowing with grati-
tude for the opportunity she had had
in singing as a member of this choir.
That is the feeling that these sisters
and the brethren have as they sit under
the baton of this great leader and his
assistant, practising hour after hour,
day after day, week after week, month
after month, to become efficient in this
great choral organization. We do not
say much about it, brethren and sis-
ters, but we do appreciate what you
are doing!

Too many of us are like that Scots-
man of whom I told you, who had lost
his wife by death, and his neighbor
came in, gave comfort, and said what
a good neighbor she had been, how
thoughtful of others, what a good wife
she had been to Jock, who was mourn-
ing. Jock said, "Aye, Tammas, Janet
was a guid woman, a guid neighbor as
you say; she was a' you say an' mair.
She was aye a guid, true wifey tae me,
and I cam' near tellin' her sac aince
or twice."

We express again our appreciation to

those who sent these lovely flowers to
us. We want to thank all those who
have contributed in any way to the
success and inspiration of this great
conference.

Now, brethren and sisters, may I say
just a word in conclusion. I have a
deep admiration in my heart for Simon
Peter, President of the Twelve Apostles.
He said in one of his general epistles:

". . . to them that have obtained like
precious faith with us through the
righteousness of God and our Saviour
Jesus Christ:

THE TIME IS NOW

BY MILDRED GRACE BARNEY

The time is now.

Wait not to do the things your heart

desires
Until that day when cares are few

and there is time.
That day is but a sprite with dancing

feet,
Who keeps forever just beyond your

reach.
The time is now.

The time is now.

How often have you passed a weary

soul
And did not pause to give a cheering

word or smile.
Let not your golden chance slip by,

the door
Once closed, perhaps may open

nevermore.
The time is now.

"Grace and peace be multiplied unto
you through the knowledge of God, and
of Jesus our Lord,

"According as his divine power hath
given unto us all things that pertain
unto life and godliness, through the
knowledge of him that hath called us
to glory and virtue:

"Whereby are given unto us exceed-
ing great and precious promises: that
by these ye might be partakers of the
divine nature, having escaped the cor-
ruption that is in the world through
lust." (2 Peter 1:1-4.)

That comes from Simon Peter who
was only two and a half years — a little
more — in the personal presence of his
Lord. Before that he did not care much
for the Church, but before this writing
he had a testimony of the divinity of the
Sonship of Jesus Christ. More than
that, he had experienced that commu-
nion of the Spirit with his Resurrected

Lord, and speaks here of being a par-
taker of the divine nature.

Hold to that thought in the midst
of an atheistic world, mentioned by
Brother Benson and others, while there
are godless men who deny the resur-
rection of Christ, who deny his living
spirit, and who have taught for forty
years young men and young women to
deny him. That is a terrible thing when
you think of it. Some of us thought
twenty years ago that such a godless
organization would break of its own
weight, and now young men who were
ten years of age when communistic
ideology took possession of so many are
now fifty years of age.

Peter says to those who knew Christ,
who had partaken of his Spirit:

"Whereby are given unto us exceed-
ing great and precious promises: that
by these ye might be partakers of the
divine nature, having escaped the cor-
ruption that is in the world through
lust.

"And beside this, giving all diligence,
add to your faith virtue; and to virtue
knowledge;

"And to knowledge temperance; and
to temperance patience; and to patience
godliness;

"And to godliness brotherly kindness;
and to brotherly kindness charity.

"For if these things [virtues] be in
you, and abound, they make you that
ye shall neither be barren nor unfruit-
ful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus
Christ." (Ibid., 1:4-8.)

To know God and his Beloved Son
is eternal life.

I do not know the author, but there
comes to my mind now these lines:
"Admire the goodness of Almighty God
He riches gave, intellectual strength to

few
Nor now commands to be nor rich, nor

learned
Nor promises reward of peace to these.
On all He moral worth bestowed,
And moral tribute asks from all.
And who that could not pay? —
Who born so poor, of intellect so mean
As not to know what seemed the best
And knowing might not do?
And He who acted thus fulfilled the law

eternal
And His promises reaped in peace.
Who sought else (did not do what his
judgment bade or the spirit prompt-
ed) sought mellow
grapes beneath the icy poles,
Sought blooming roses on the cheek of

death,
Sought substance in a world of fleeting
shades."

God help us to be partakers of the
DIVINE NATURE. May the spirit of
this great conference radiate from your
hearts to those whom you will meet
when you go back to your stakes and
wards, and especially may it radiate in
your homes, I pray in the name of Jesus
Christ. Amen.

954

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

Time for

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rich steamy puddings, fluffy cakes
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UTAH-IDAHO SUGAR COMPANY General Office Salt Lake City Utah

DECEMBER i960

955

Church

Scholars

Speak

Excerpts from

significant articles in

past issues of

The Improvement Era

theBOOK0!

MORMON

WHAT IS THE "FIFTH GOSPEL"?

... by this revelation of what God did for the people of the
western world— making known the truth to them; making
known the gospel to them— the covenant of everlasting life
which God, who cannot lie, promised before the world
began; sending the Risen Christ to them, that they might
hear his voice and be brought to a knowledge of God and
led into the one fold of Christ— all this vindicates the justice
and the mercy of God to the joy of all those who contemplate
these high things, and becomes an added message concerning
the hand-dealings of God toward men, that is of great value—
a new-found "Fifth Gospel," to be joined to the four Gospels
of the New Testament, that makes for the increase of the
witness of God that Jesus is the Christ, the Eternal God, mani-
festing himself to all nations as the Savior of the world and
the Savior of men individually that dwell therein, to the
praise of his Majesty and to the glory of his name forever and
forever.

—Elder Brigham H. Roberts

WHAT IS THE STICK OF JOSEPH?

It is very apparent that the Bible is the record, or Stick of
Judah; moreover that it does not contain a history of the
nations which were to come of Ephraim and Manasseh. That
stick, or history, must be sought for elsewhere. And from
where, only in America? . . .

The Book of Mormon is the record of the descendants of
Joseph who were led across the "great waters" to inherit this
western land, which is designated as being choice above all
other lands. Surely these blessings could not be realized in
Palestine. Joseph and his sons did not become a multitude of
nations there; the tribes of Ephraim and Manasseh did not
receive a more wonderful inheritance in Palestine than any
other of the tribes of Israel. There the chief honors were
conferred first on Benjamin and then on Judah. Here in
America all these promises were fulfilled when the descend-
ants of Joseph possessed the land given as their inheritance.

—President Joseph Fielding Smith

WHAT IS THE LANGUAGE OF THE BOOK
OF MORMON?

The Book of Mormon recites in its opening verses that
the history contained in its pages is engraved in the language
of Lehi, which consists of "the learning of the Jews and the
language of the Egyptians." (1 Nephi 1:2.) Well along in
the work, the Egyptian character of the script is noted
(Mosiah 1:4) in the exhortation of Benjamin, who reviewed
the history of his people and reminded them that Lehi, who
left Jerusalem and was responsible for the transportation of
his family to the Western Hemisphere, had carried with him
the ancient brazen record of his people, likewise engraved in
Egyptian characters. Lehi, he said, "having been taught in
the language of the Egyptians, therefore he could read these
engravings and teach them to his children." From the changes
which crept into the system of writing, the language used in
writing the Book of Mormon became in later years known to
the Nephite people as "reformed Egyptian." (Mormon 9:32.)

—Ariel L. Crowley

WHAT IS OUR DUTY AS CUSTODIANS OF
THE BOOK OF MORMON?

Teaching the gospel to Israel is our duty and responsibility.
The day is approaching when we are to dicharge it;
hence the need of every young man and young woman

956

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

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957

in the Church being familiar with these great promises and realizing that
the responsibility of being the saviors of the house . of Israel rests upon us.
Like Joseph of old, we are to come out of our isolation to be the saviors of that
house of Israel— not to feed them with the physical bread as he did, but succor
them with the bread of life. Greater things than have ever heretofore been accom-
plished, more wonderful events than have ever, up to this day, transpired, are
before this Church. As the day approaches, when those events will be consum-
mated, let us be prepared.

So that, in knowing that the Book of Mormon is true, my anxiety is that the
young people of the Church will also come to know what their responsibility is
and prepare themselves and be ready for the time when the Lord shall bring to pass
the redemption of the house of Israel.

—Elder Melvin J. Ballard

WHAT HAS SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERY DONE TO THE
BOOK OF MORMON?

The history of the book acclaims its greatness, but the book itself is the thing that
defies all attempts to explain it away. No one can deny, that as a book, true or
false, it is a stupendous reality with a marvelous origin, a gripping power for
good, and a wonderful history . . . Scientific discovery, instead of destroying
faith in the book, has wonderfully increased interest and confidence in it. And
particularly important in this age of rapidly increasing skepticism, its harmony with
the teachings of the Bible place it in the field of theology as veritably "A new
witness for God."

—George H. Brimhall

HOW DOES ALMA SPEAK TO THE TWENTIETH
CENTURY?

As one reads the book of Alma and ponders upon its lesson, there comes the
feeling that this present day with its immeasurably changed material conditions,
has need of Alma's teachings. All that he taught may be applied to our day.

It is always so with spiritual truth. It is universal. The principles of the gos-
pel are as useful behind an ox team as upon a steamer deck. It is well to remem-
ber that material achievements do not change spiritual needs.

This is a Book of Mormon year . . . Let us read and enjoy the Nephite record;
it is filled with stirring history and eternal truth.

—Elder John A. Widtsoe

IN GREEN PASTURES

BY MILLIE C. KROLL

While the hot flames fried the fire log's sap,
She sat with the Bible in her lap,
Reading to me as her finger moved.
So often had those passages proved
Her only support in hours of trial,
I could well understand her tearful smile,
Whenever she paused to turn a leaf-
Knowing she was no stranger to grief.

Many since have preached that olden text
And sought my face as if sorely vexed—
But my heart was eons of miles away,
And didn't hear when they said: "Let's pray!"

958

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

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959

October Conference
Index

SPEAKERS

Benson, Ezra Taft 944

Brown, Hugh B. 938

Buehner, Carl W 926

Burton, Theodore M. 92G

Christiansen, EIRay L 952

Critchlow, William J., Jr 918

Clark, J. Reuben, Jr. 906

Dyer, Alvin R 930

Evans, Richard L 950

Hanks, Marion D 912

Hinckley, Gordon B. 936

Hunter, Howard W 948

Hunter, Milton R 916

Isaacson, Thorpe B 934

Ivins, Antoine R. 946

Kimball, Spencer W. 922

Lee, Harold B. 914

Longden, John 950

McConkie, Bruce R 928

McKay, David O. 904, 952

Moyle, Henry D 908

Richards, Franklin D. 924

Richards, LeGrand 938

Smith, Eldred G. 936

Smith, Joseph Fielding 910

Sonne, Alma : 948

Stapley, Delbert Leon 942

Tanner, Nathan Eldon 924

Taylor, Henry D. 912

Tuttle, A. Theodore 942

Wirthlin, Joseph L. 920

SUBJECTS

Appreciation 952

Book of Mormon 936

Children 942

Communism 904, 944

Criticism 912

Doubters 948

Eternal laws 950

Europe 920, 926, 930

Example 934, 952

Family 942, 952

Far East 936

Freedom 944

Gratitude 926

Humility 914

Indians 922

Jesus Christ 904, 906, 942, 948

Joseph Smith 908

Judgment 916

Leadership 914, 934

Loyalty 912, 948

Missionaries 918, 920, 922, 924, 926, 928

930, 934, 936, 938

Monroe Doctrine 944

Mormonism , 938, 942

Mortality 918

Obedience 912

Parents 942

Peace 908

Personal Testimony 906, 924, 926, 946

Pioneers 948

Priesthood 946

Primary Hospital 926

Prophecy 930

Repentance 910

Resurrection 938

Spiritual Survival 950

Sunday School 948

Tabernacle ..938

Temple Work 952

Virtues -904

Word of Wisdom 910

Youth 934

NOTE: Neither Elder George Q. Morris of the
Council of the Twelve nor President Levi Edgar
Young of the First Council of the Seventy at-
tended sessions of the conference. Elder Sterling
W. Sill, Assistant to the Twelve, and President
S. Dilworth Young of the First Council of the
Seventy were present, but did not speak. Elders
Mark E. Petersen and Marion G. Romney of the
Council of the Twelve addressed the priesthood
session of the conference. President Frank H.
Brown of the East Central States Mission spoke
at the first session. See the Conference Report
pamphlet for these speeches.

Church Moves On

( Continued from page 882 ) Wilmington ( Delaware ) . Branches
are Media and Camden (New Jersey), Allentown, Chester, and
Redding (Pennsylvania), Dover and Salisbury (Maryland). This is
the 304th stake unit of the Church now functioning. A "flourishing
branch of the Church in Philadelphia" was reported as early as
November 1839. The following month the Prophet Joseph preached
before an audience estimated at 3,000 in Philadelphia.

The First Presidency announced the appointment of Elder

John Longden, Assistant to the Council of the Twelve, as

supervisor of the Pacific Islands Missions. The missions will

include the Samoan, Tongan, French Polynesian (formerly Tahitian),

and a new mission to be formed in the Cook Islands to be known

as the Rarotonga Mission,

Brisbane ( Australia ) Stake was organized under the direction
of Elder Spencer W. Kimball of the Council of the Twelve
from parts of the Australian Mission. Elder William Ed-
ward Waters was sustained as stake president with Elders Hairy
Jones and George Alvin Orth as counselors. Wards are Brisbane,
Brisbane Second, Brisbane Third, Toowoomba, and Ipswich. The
branches are Chermside, Nambour, Southport, and Bundaberg. The
stake membership is approximately 1400. In 1930, the Church
records indicate, the Queensland Conference of the Australian Mis-
sion, of which Brisbane was a part, had a membership of 294.

Elder Spencer W. Kimball of the Council of the Twelve
presided at the organization of the Melbourne (Australia)
Stake of Zion, which was previously a part of the South
Australian Mission. Elder Boyd C. Bott was sustained as stake
president with Elders W. F. Davis and Maxwell Oaine as coun-
selors. The stake has a membership of approximately two thousand.
It is situated in the Australian state of Victoria. This is the third
stake of the Church now functioning in Australia— Sydney, Brisbane,
and Melbourne. All were organized during the year I960.

Elders Edwin B. Jones and Sylvan H. Wittwer sustained as
counselors to President George Romney of the Detroit (Michigan)
Stake. They succeed Elders Ruel L. Jensen and John Klaphaak.

The First Presidency announced the appointment of Elder
Don C. Wood of Portland, Oregon, as president of the North-
western States Mission succeeding President Franklin D.
Richards who was sustained as an Assistant to the Council of the
Twelve at the recent general conference. President Wood is a
medical doctor whose professional life has been in research. He is a
recent resident of Bountiful, Utah, where he served as bishop of
the Val Verda Ward at one time. He was a member of the district
presidency in the Eastern States Mission and filled a part-time
mission while pursuing his academic studies. At the time of this
latest call, President Wood was serving as a counselor to President
Richards in the Northwestern States Mission. With him to this new
Church assignment will go his wife Geneal and their five children. .

GARDEN GATE
by Violet M. Roberts

I think of it kindly:

Our old garden gate,
Which heard whispered secrets

Right after a date.
It creaked on its hinges,

But never a word
Did it ever relate -

Of love it had heard.

960

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

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DECEMBER 1960

961

TRAINING THE PERSON . . .

. . . for business . . . for life

LDS Business College equips young people to meet life
successfully . . . educationally, socially, religiously.

Four big advantages for you at LDS:

BUSINESS
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Training with the latest
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available from the finest, most quali-
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awards are made to students who
show marked distinction in their
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SOCIAL
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A fully integrated pro-
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athletic activities for building self
assurance and leadership and devel-
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dormitory is maintained at moderate
rates for girls. Other living accom-
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reasonable rates.

RELIGIOUS
TRAINING

Institute of religion
classes make the scriptures come to
life and give students a practical out-
look on the religion of the Latter-day
Saints. These institute classes help
to give students the well-rounded
education so important to proper
adult development.

EMPLOYMENT
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The placement service
actively covers the intermountain in-
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students wishing part-time work will
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Employment assistance is available
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Strength from the Desert

(Continued from page 899)

After his next trip into the city,
Alton left, with the empty bottle and
the day's pay for milk and eggs, a
box of pastel chalks. Why not give
this kid, with a dream in his heart,
a small break? As days went by this
exchange of artistic goodwill be-
tween Pedro and Alton continued,
without their meeting again.

No one but Pedro could have been
responsible for the unexpected visit
Alton received in the late fall from
a committee of artists from the city.
Wouldn't he exhibit his paintings at
the annual southwestern painter's
outdoor art show?

"But I don't qualify," he protested.
"My subjects are foreign to this
locale." In the end he hung three
of his paintings.

He was confused and angered at
comments overheard at the show,
"Modern, but emotionless; rhythm,
balance, perfect technique, but no
feeling, no heart." After all he hadn't
asked for space in their art show. He
went further into his shell of intro-
spection.

One day after the healing magic
of the desert began to stir within
him, he said to himself, "I'll go so
far, I'll climb so high, that I'll be
able to see and to feel what that
crazy kid said about his desert."

And so on the strength of Pedro's
goat's milk, his fresh eggs, and the
desert's alchemy, he climbed to the
highest peak of the Organ Mountain.
It was the perfect day. In late fall,
when the north-lands are snow-cov-
ered, the western desert is warm and
clear. Alton looked across the valley,
shimmering in sunshine, and to the
far-distant mountains. He felt
strength surging through his whole
being. What a day for a man to
drain his heart of bitterness. As he
sat and gazed, a calmness fell upon
him, a peace entered his heart.

He no longer saw army installa-
tions as products of the desert,
aimed at death and destruction. The
White Sands Proving Grounds, the
center of guided missile warfare, no
longer provoked thoughts of war, but
a sense of peace, in security. He no
longer hated the dryness and the
heat. He was seeing color, distance,
light, and shadows as he had never
seen them before. He arose and
extended his arms in an attitude of
blessing.

962

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

"Beautiful, boundless," he said
aloud. "Created by a mind beyond
man's conception— and I was created
to paint it."

"I knew, Senor, you'd keep looking
at the desert until you'd see its
beauty. It has the gray and the
blue and the purple. It has the blue-
pink and the gold at sunset. This
be the place to see it all. I knew
someday you'd come here."

Alton lost his balance and regained
it just in time to prevent the end of
his artistic career.

"You little rascal, you scamp, even
if you are a better artist than I am,
I don't want you scaring the wits
out of me. And there you go with
those pretty words again. You
amaze me, boy." He gave Pedro's
ear an affectionate tweak and
touseled his dark hair. "Do you
come here often, vourself?"

"When there are not so many
errands for Mama. I've waited for
you here before. It is the real place
to see our desert. I knew you'd
come, Senor."

"You did, huh? You are quite an
artist yourself, Pedro. Thanks for
the sketches under the milk bottles.
They are good. By the way, fellow,
have you saved up enough egg
money to buy your mama that coat
for Christmas?"

"No, Senor, we have the bad luck.
Our goat, she died last month. Mama
need all my money for food."

"Hey, look, Pedro, have I been
drinking milk from a dead goat?"

"Oh, no, Senor, I bargain for your
leche. On the desert we must bar-
gain—or die. I buy your leche from
my friend, Juan. I make five centavos
each day on your leche. My Mama
need all I make. No coat for her at
Christmas. Our goat, she take bad
time to die."

"How unkind of her," said Alton.
"Five centavos, five cents. . . ." He
stood erect and took another long
look across the valley. He spoke
aloud, not to Pedro, but to his inner
self. "Bargain on the desert! Bar-
gain for health, for strength, for new
beauty— and for the love of a Mexi-
can kid."

"Since you come here, Senor, now
you will make the great painting.
Now you will paint the desert."

"Yes, I shall paint the desert," said
Alton.

They sat in silence, throwing small
stones down the mountain side.

"Look, Pedro," said Alton, "I've
been lonely out here, and I want to

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• Delightful time of year to go.

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cMaqic Carpet Travels

DECEMBER 1960

963

do something about it. I want to
throw a big Christmas party."

"Si, Sen or. Many fine artists from
the city will come," said Pedro,

"No, Pedro, no artists. I want you
to come, you and your mamacita and
all the boys and girls you can find on
the desert and in the village nearby.
You run along now and invite them
all."

The boy obeyed at once. "Adios,
Senor."

Alton took a last searching look
across the desert and went down the
slope, carrying in his mind every
facet of light and color, all the en-
chantment and the haunting beauty
of the desert.

A bouyancy that he had not felt for
months swept through him, an im-
patience to be about the work of
transmitting to canvas the bigness,
the mood, and the strength of the
desert; and to plan a Christmas
party, such as the children of the
desert had never seen. These
thoughts spurred him on, and he
found himself almost running.

The painting, which no one but
Pedro had seen, was finished with
such speed and dexterity that Alton
himself stood in awe of his own
skill. No less miraculous was the
peace in his heart.

The party? Nothing was lacking,
as the avalanche of children swept
in on Christmas Eve for the cele-

bration. Alton was prepared, he had
bought all that the village had to
offer of gifts and party food and
had stormed the city for more.

There was a coat for Mamacita,
such as she had never dreamed of.
For Pedro there was an artist's
easel, paints and brushes in all
media— and tied just outside the door
a live milk goat.

"I had no gift to bring you, Senor,
nothing but this," said Pedro, hang-
ing his head in shame.

Alton raised the plain brown paper
that concealed a winter bouquet of
such artistic arrangement and pure
beauty that he hesitated to speak.

"Where? . . . How . . . Pedro

"When you told me about the
party, Senor, I start collecting, all
free, from the desert."

The sweep of tumbleweed, the
yuca burrs, the cacti spears, the tall
whisp of dry grass, and the mesquite
root, used as driftwood, was made
into a piece of art that was worthy
of a place beside Alton's own paint-
ing, where he proudly placed it.

As the party got under way, the
valley rang with laughter. Pedro
had proved himself a man about the
desert. He knew everybody, and all
were invited. They commingled in
a symphony of happiness not unlike
the way colors blend in a bouquet of
flowers.

When horns were blowing at their

distracting loudest, drums were be-
ing mercilessly pounded, and laugh-
ter was rippling like waves, a knock
was heard at Alton's front door.

"Mr. Alton MacCanlass?" asked a
dignified man as Alton opened the
door a crack. "I am Ira LaVey."

"I'm sorry, Sir, but we are in the
midst of a Christmas celebration— I
might say, to end all celebrations."

"I know," said Mr. LaVey, "I'm not
crashing the party, I was invited."

"I beg your pardon. . . ." But
before more explanation could be
offered, Pedro was at the door.

"Please, Senor, I ask the great art
man from the city to come, not just
for the party, but to see your desert
picture. Please forgive if I do
wrong."

And that is how the critic, who at
the art show, had been overheard to
say, "too cold, no heart," now said to
Alton, "Truly a great painting, a
great understanding of your subject.
Keep the painting as long as it has
something to say to you. When
there are more of its kind, and per-
haps even better, and you feel that
you can spare it, I should like to
hang it with my collection of the
greatest of the southwestern master-
pieces."

Alton MacCanlass had brought
Christmas to the children of the
desert. A desert lad had brought
peace and a new spirit of love into
the heart of a man.

Heavens Opened

( Continued from page 895 )

title "A Sacred Oratorio." It was
signed by the poet Charles Jennens,
and with it was a letter urging
Handel to start working immediately
on some suitable music to accom-
pany the words.

"The Lord gave the word," the
letter emphasized.

Handel scoffed. He was not a re-
ligious man. It was absurd to
assume that God had anything to do
with such a thing. He wished that
the so-called poet, Jennens, had spent
his talent writing words to an opera
instead.

Wearily, he began fingering
through the pages.

"He was despised and rejected of
men." He read. "Neither found
he any to comfort him."

Oh, how well he knew what this

feeling was! Who could better
understand?

On another page he read, "God
will give you rest."

Suddenly the words began to burn
into his soul. They took on mean-
ing. Perhaps it was because at this
time he so needed their strength.

"Wonderful, Counselor! worthy is
the Lamb! I know that my Re-
deemer liveth! Rejoice! Hallelujah!"

Then from some "beyondness,"
back into the great soul the creative
fire was again kindled— and music
poured forth with such flooding
swiftness that Handel's pen could
not keep up with its flow. Page
after page yielded to the symbols of
his great conception. He refused to
eat, there was little time and less
inclination for sleep. For twenty-
two days he wrote. Often he would
leave his desk and run to his clavi-
chord—sometimes singing, "Halle-

lujah," while unrestrained tears
coursed down his cheeks.

When the score was finished, he
fell on his bed completely exhausted.
He slept as in a coma, for seventeen
hours. On his little desk lay "the
ripened product of his genius," The
Messiah, an oratorio of incomparable
grandeur and ineffable beauty.

He took it to London, but London
would have none of him. So he took
his masterpiece to Dublin, Ireland,
where on April 13, 1742 it was per-
formed for the first time. For this
first performance he set to work to
rehearse the largest body of singers
available.

The choirs of two cathedrals
were placed at his disposal. They
numbered a total of twenty voices,
six boys and fourteen men. Handel
directed his performance from the
harpsichord, at which instrument he
kept time, by playing, gesticulating,

964

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

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DECEMBER 1960

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965

and sometimes even shouting. This
magnificent music, being heard for
the first time, was overwhelmingly
thrilling, even from so small a chorus.
Tickets sold so rapidly that the
women were told to come without
their hoops and the men left their
swords home to make more room.
Handel insisted that all proceeds go
to charity. Well he knew, that little
less than a miracle had fostered this
one of his creations.

Hearing of his success in Dublin,
London now accepted the challenge
and made ready to receive him. The
Covent Garden Theater welcomed a
performance. King George II was
there, and when the great "Hallelujah
Chorus" rose to an exalted climax, the
king stood in reverence. The crowd
followed his example, and the whole
audience remained standing until
the conclusion of the number. This
time-honored custom is observed
today.

Although The Messiah was per-
formed thirty-four times during the
life of Handel, it never was given
on a scale entirely worthy of its
merit until 1784 when the Handel
Commemoration took place at West-
minster Abbey and an orchestra of
240 players combined their talents.
On this occasion, King George III
ordered a repetition of both the
"Hallelujah" and the "Amen" cho-
ruses.

It has been said that Handel set
the Bible to music. Although this
is an exaggerated statement, it is
nevertheless true that The Messiah
itself clothes with music the im-
portant scriptures between the birth
and resurrection of the Savior Jesus
Christ.

So as you listen to The Messiah,

listen with the heart. Thrill at the
brilliant overture with its blend of
orchestral harmony. Glory in the
significant promise that "Every Val-
ley Shall be Exalted," let your heart
sing with the glad proclamation of
"Unto Us a Child Is Born" and when
the chorus announces the names of
the Messiah: "Wonderful Counselor,
Emmanuel," let your soul be filled
with worship and faith in that name.

When the strings of violin, oboe,
and cello merge in the cadences of
the exquisite "Pastoral Symphony
for Strings," extract your mind from
the things of the world and for just
a moment, imagine yourself on the
star— silvered plains of Bethlehem.
Perhaps you will hear the fluted
tones of the shepherd's horn as you
feel the awesome wonder of that
Holy Night. You may even be al-
lowed a glimpse of the star.

In the prophetic choral rendition
of "All we, like sheep have gone
astray," search your heart; for here,
Handel has given us an impressive
musical picture of the wanderings
of a scattered flock. Then when,
in reverence, you arise to your feet
at the onset of the "Hallelujah
Chorus," believe! Believe, as your
soul soars with the music, and know
this, that the heavens are not closed
to man. Remember again the words
of Handel when he was asked as to
the impression under which he com-
posed this glorious paragon of sound
and song:

"I did think that I did see all
heaven open up before me, and even
the great God, himself."

If you are listening to The Messiah
for the first time, you will, perhaps,
think that it should end with this
great chorus. To go on may seem
anti-climax— but know this, the full

story has not yet been told, and
Handel has carried the work on with
undiminished interest and "Part the
Third" is opened with a sublime
affirmation: "I know that my Re-
deemer liveth." Notice the quiet
simplicity of the accompaniment.

The stirring bass aria with a clarion
call of a trumpet then sounds forth
in the voice of prophecy: "The
trumpet shall sound." Renew your
faith in the resurrection and remem-
ber again the purpose of Christ's
being: to fulfil the promise of life
eternal. The great "Amen Chorus"
as a finale should cause your full
heart to exclaim, "So let it be."

Handel met with many difficulties
in his later life— but never again did
he despair. He went totally blind,
but the eyes of his great soul glowed
with ever-increasing light.

On April the sixth, at the age of
seventy-four, he sat listening to an
Easter rendition of his greatest
achievement. When the chorus be-
gan singing "The trumpet shall
sound," he slumped down in his seat.
Too ill to stay for the rest of the
performance, he was taken home and
put to bed, never to arise again.

"Let me die on Good Friday," he
once said, "that I may rejoice with
the good God, my sweet Savior, on
the day of his resurrection." His
wish was granted, for it was on the
early morning of Friday, April 14,
1759 that Handel died— but his music
will live on to bring glimpses of
heaven and peace to music lovers
the world over.

Bibliography — "Messiah" ** Sir
Malcolm Sargent (Record) Living
Biographies of Great Composers-
Thomas. History of Music— Volume
2.

ABSTRACT-EXPRESSIONIST

BY KATHLEEN BRIGGS

In careless ecstasy he flings
His frosty pigment at the pane,
Working with ice and wind and

chance
And spinning weather vane.

At patterns weirdly delicate
We stare with wondering eyes,
Engrossed in winter's masterpiece,
Too awed to criticize.

966

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

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These Times
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antee peaceful, glorious results. The
history of the United States, whose
constitutional threads were com-
pletely severed in 1861 and stitched
back together by force of arms, 1861-
1877, proves that. But constitution-
alism does assure considerable basis
for procedure and progress toward
the development of formal law. The
evolution and development of sys-
tems of law is one of the great
pageants of history. That systems
of law of one kind or another pre-
vail in all parts of the earth is one
of the tremendous facts of life. That
man seeks for some international
legal order is a cause for gratitude
for man's nature. If any regret the
necessity for U. S. hospitality to
heads of state visiting the U. N., they
might recall the beautiful words of
Isaiah about the law going forth
from Zion. America is truly a place
of refuge— a land of Zion— in these
times. Where better could the U. N.
meet?

2. Cultural interaction and devel-
opment. Much has been made of
Khrushchev's shoe-brandishing, shoe
in hand instead of on foot. No edi-
torial comment has been seen of the
more important (to a social scien-
tist) facts. These are the facts that

(1) all the delegates (probably)
wore shoes and kept them on; and

(2) all the shoes were probably of
one fundamental design and method
of manufacture— with machine-made
lasts. If a General Assembly had,
by some miracle, met in 1660 or
1760 instead of 1960, there would
have been as many varieties of
footwear as delegates— or at least
place of origin. The range would
have run from primitive cloth, fiber,
or animal sandals on the part of the
Afro-Asian delegates, to a soft leather
boot or silk pump worn by a French-
man. The marvel in 1960 is the
uniformity in style, utility, material,
and mode of manufacture of the
shoes worn by Nasser, Khrushchev,
Sukarno, Eisenhower, Macmillan,
and all the rest. Moreover, Eisen-
hower (or his family) is as likely
to wear an oriental-type sandal
(around the house at least) as the
Asian-African delegates' constituents.
Why? There are two reasons, the
first being the world-wide extension
of knowledge. Thomas Blanchard's

968

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

machine-made last and the Lyman
Blake-Col. McKay stitching ma-
chine—or their counterparts— turn out
similar shoes the world over in 1960.
More and more people wear them.
A remarkable fact! Second, the
interchange of the world's cultures,
with Western civilization dominat-
ing, has proceeded at a fantastic rate
since the year 1500 A.D. Editorials
of deep meaning could be written,

NO KIDDING!

BY JANE MERCHANT

He charges madly through the door
And greets the youngsters with a

roar,
Imitating Peggy's lisp,
Declaring the wind will blow a wisp
Like John away, evincing fright
At Tim's exaggerated height,
And vowing that May would bring a

round
Figure if auctioned, pound by pound.

I do. not count as utter rabble

The guest who conquers me at

Scrabble,
Spills crumbs, gossips, asks my age,
And shatters vases. All my rage
And fury are reserved for one
Who teases children, just for fun.

not alone on Khrushchev's using his
shoe for a drumstick, but on the fact
that he wore shoes, shirt, necktie,
trousers, jacket, and probably under-
wear, all of Western design and
style. All the articles worn by nearly
all the delegates, if exhibited in an
anthropological museum, would not
be radically different in style and
mode of manufacture from those, of
Eisenhower and Macmillan. Imagine
what interest could be generated if,
at the British Museum or the Smith-
sonian, you were to pass by an ex-
hibit of such a nature. What a
demonstration of the penetration of
the world's cultures by Western
modes.

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DECEMBER 1960

969

The American Constitution . . .

THE

SPOKEN

WORD

RICHARD L. EVANS

This week we would let the words of the great
British statesman, William E. Gladstone, suggest a
subject: ". . . the American Constitution, is so far
as I can see, the most wonderful word ever struck
off at a given time by the brain and purpose of
man."1 This we would cite also from another source: "The Con-
stitution of the United States is a glorious standard; ... a heavenly
banner; . . . like the cooling shades and refreshing waters of a great
rock in a weary and thirsty land . . . like a great tree under whose
branches men from every clime can be shielded from the burning
rays of the sun . . . founded in the wisdom of God"- "by the hands
of wise men whom [God] raised up unto this very purpose."' With
the recurring anniversary of the Constitution, the contrast between
the principle of freedom and the opposite intent to enslave men
and their minds has become so sharp, so apparent, that gratitude
for freedom and dedication to its principles and preservation could
scarcely be overemphasized. In a recent significant address an
eminent judge had this to say concerning these contrasts: ". . . today
we face a crisis which calls upon the devotion of every citizen as
never before"4 . . . "funds have been poured out like water . . ."4
for the preservation of freedom. . . . "But material benefits are not
enough, we must keep the flame of freedom burning"4 . . . "teach
the youth coming on the meaning of the Declaration of Independ-
ence, of the Constitution of the United States"4 ( and we would add
with words that have no double meaning, but faith, conviction,
and the willingness to live with dedication or to die for freedom) —
and "create in the uncaptured nations a love of liberty like that
which led our fathers to cross the seas."4 . . . "The oppressed should
also know that the choice is not mainly between low and high
standards of living, but between freedom and slavery. . . ."' The
following is from the words of George Washington: ". . . it is easy
to foresee," he said, "that, from different causes, and from different
quarters, much pains will be taken, many artifices employed, to
weaken in your mind the conviction of this truth . . . against which
the batteries of internal and external enemies will be most con-
stantly and actively (though often covertly and insidiously) di-
rected."5 And you must watch "for its preservation with jealous
anxiety."5 And this from Andrew Jackson: "Our Constitution is no
longer a doubtful experiment. ... It has . . . shown the wisdom and
foresight of those who framed it; . . . You have the highest of
human trusts committed to your care. Providence has showered
on this favored land blessings without number, and has chosen you,
as the guardians of freedom, to preserve it for the benefit of the
human race. May he who holds in his hands the destinies of na-
tions make you worthy of the favors he has bestowed, and enable
you, with pure hearts, and pure hands, and sleepless vigilance, to
guard and defend to the end of time the great charge he has com-
mitted to your keeping."0 And then he added, as fervently do we
all, "Thank God that my life has been [lived] in a land of liberty."6

"The Spoken Word," from Temple Square presented over KSL and the
Columbia Broadcasting System, September 18, 1960. Copyright 1960.

William E. Gladstone, "Kin Beyond Sea."
2Josei:>h Smith, "The Principle of Religion."
3D&C 101:80.

4Florence E. Allen, U.S. Court of Appeals, 6th Circuit, Commencement Address, Uni-
versity of Utah, Aug. 26, 1960.

"George Washington, Farewell Address.
"Andrew Jackson, Farewell Address.

The social scientist is interested in
Mr. K's tantrums, to be sure. They
are helpful and lively clinical data-
warning signals. Comforting, too,
was Macmillan's elegance at im-
perturbable repartee. But, aware of
the influences of culture on person-
ality and behavior, the social scientist
also sees— in the facts of shoes, for
example— the prospect for cultural
development which may yet parallel
and support the quest for a more
effective legal order. Blanchard's
lasts, Elias Howe's sewing machine,
and the Blake-McKay machines have
come forth from this Western Zion.
So, too, may the law with its Western
moral values and Macmillan's ele-
gance.

3. Politics. The gathering of di-
verse cultures and personalities,
wearing shoes, for a regularly con-
stituted meeting, insures lively,
dramatic political action and behav-
ior. The remarkable thing to the
social scientist, viewing history and
cultural conflict, is that— contrary to
the American West not so long ago—
none of the world's cowboys present
at the U.N. wore guns. No one spun
a six-shooter out of a holster. No
one broke a chair over a delegate's
head. No one threw a bottle over
the bar into the mirror or onto the
Secretary General's desk. There
might have been a telephone
"yanked" out of the wall at Castro's
first hotel. But the use of the word
"yanked" to form the past tense of a
colloquial verb "yank," suggests that
Americans in hotel rooms have some-
times not been above such behavior.

What is the upshot of such politics
in such a historic, legal, and cultural
milieu? To the social scientist, the
prospect is encouraging— encourag-
ing for improvement— for improve-
\ ment of world morals. There will
be lapses, starts, stops, retrogression.
But the fifteenth session, at least to
this social scientist, was a far run
up the road of human destiny from
the political scenes described in the
Old Testament in the days of Og,
king of Bashan; in the spread of the
Pax Romana; Custer's last stand; or
the Battle of Britain. If shoes, not
spears, can be beaten as drumsticks,
there may be a chance for more
plowshares out of swords. The peo-
ples of the world, watching future
sessions of the General Assembly,
can help decide. Maybe all dele-
gates will eventually keep their
shoes on, feet warm, heads cool.

970

THE IMPROVEMENT; ERA

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Knowledge is Power

(Continued from page 893)

do me?"

How then can we instil in the
hearts of these energetic youth a
lasting interest in and love for the
gospel? Here are a few suggestions :

1. Give Them a Vision of the Work.
Joseph Smith was a great teacher
because he could enthral men by
giving them a vision of their possi-
bilities that would keep them stand-
ing in sun or rain for hours to hear
his message. As teachers we should
strive to help our students see the
value and worth of the material we
are trying to impart. It must be
vital and applicable in their lives
now, as well as in the future.

2. Be Enthusiastic. Nothing is so
contagious as enthusiasm. He that
has a spark in his eye and voice is
sure to kindle a fire in the hearts of
his listeners. How can a teacher
expect students to have interest in
that which neither stimulates nor
motivates them?

3. Use Problems. Students of all
ages respond to real life problems
with enthusiasm. Thinking is fun
and exciting when we are concentrat-
ing on problems that have meaning
in our lives.

4. Emotional Involvement. We
live more by our feelings than by
reason. If you want to excite in-
terest in your class, endeavor to get
the students emotionally involved in
the material or problem under dis-
cussion.

5. Progression. Have you ever
sat in a class and felt that you were
not getting anywhere? Keep your
discussion moving. Let the students
feel they are making progress as they
move towards some worthwhile goal.

6. Humor. "Laughter is the oil
that lubricates the machinery of life."
Nothing secures interest quite as
quickly as good humor. Caution
should be taken not to carry a little
nonsense too far but, generally, more
humor should be encouraged when
it is wholesome and grows naturally
out of the subject at hand.

Putting Knowledge to Work

A trained teacher might develop a
thirst for knowledge in the minds of
his students, but unless he also de-
velops in them the ability and the
desire to use this knowledge he has

surely failed. Knowledge that can-
not be used in meeting real life situ-
ations will soon be forgotten and
discarded. Whenever we face a
problem or decision in life, our minds
immediately endeavor to recall
knowledge which will give direction
to the action we must take. If we
are able to draw from our minds the
right knowledge, the problem can be
solved, and progress has been ac-
complished. Therefore, the more
knowledge we acquire the better
equipped we are to face life.

Help Students Develop the Ability
to Think

The best thinkers are the most suc-
cessful people in life and of greatest
service in building the kingdom of
God on earth. When we calculate
what tremendous strides have been
made since men learned to reason
according to the scientific process,
we can begin in part to see the value
of ordering our thinking. Try the
following to help students use the
knowledge they have gained to solve
life's problems:

1. Use Problems. Select a real
life problem that relates to the lesson
you are teaching and write it on the
chalk board.

2. Get the Facts. Encourage the
students to state whatever opinions
or facts they have regarding the
problem. Write these on the board
as they are given. If the facts are
insufficient to warrant a conclusion,
the students should be encouraged
to search for further information or
the teacher can mention facts that
are pertinent to the particular prob-
lem. The teacher should encourage
pros and cons of the question under
discussion.

3. The Conclusion. When all the
facts relevant to the problem have
been stated, the students, with the
guidance of the teacher, should come
to a conclusion.

4. Test the Conclusion. After the
class has reached their conclusion,
they should be directed to test their
conclusion to see whether it is logical
and in harmony with the stated facts
and, further, whether it is consistent
with truths they are already ac-
quainted with in their studies— that
is, does the conclusion stand up in
the light of the revealed word of
God? That which is not in harmony
with the "scriptures" must be re-
jected.

972

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

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□
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Enclosed is my check for $49.95. Please send, postpaid, the complete 50
record album of the Book of Mormon.

Enclosed is my check for $9.95. Please send my album and the first 3
records. I will send $1.00 plus handling costs per week for each record for
39 weeks. My 40th and final $1.00 brings me the last 8 records.
Enclosed is my $1.00 for "A Voice From the Dust." A single 33% rpm
excerpt sampling from the above album. If you decide the entire album is
for you, your $1.00 will be applied to the purchase price.

ADDRESS.

CITY.

.STATE.

DECEMBER 1960

973

DISTINCTIVE BINDINGS

For a Pemt<||^tti Reference of the Improvement Era

-1- or 12 issues in hand-
some covers only $3.30. All
orders should be accom-
panied with 12 Improve-
ment Eras and payment in
advance, plus postage for
return mail.

The West's Finest
Printers and Binders

• 33 RICHARDS SfS$

• EM 4-2581

• SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH*

Deseret

News

Press

Teen-agers have always been special
favorites of the Deseret News. One of the
nation's most outstanding teen writers is
Elaine Cannon, author of the weekly "Dear
Elaine" advice column. Enjoy the finest in
local teen-age topics regularly in Your . . .

Bmbmemt Mmw§

^att|^ihe90eJjegram

THE MOUNTAIN WEST'

E W S P A P E R

Personal assurance as to the light-
ness of a conclusion can be ascer-
tained through the medium of
prayer as explained by the Lord to
Oliver Cowdery when he desired to
assist the Prophet Joseph in the trans-
lation of the Book of Mormon. ( D&C
9.) This is not contrary to the
scientific method for, as proclaimed
by Moroni, ". . . by the power of the
Holy Ghost ye may know the truth
of all things." (Moroni 10:5.)

Remember, truth is in harmony
with all the facts. Poor thinkers
generally make little use of facts but
instead are wholly directed by their
feelings or opinions and become ideal
targets for propaganda and question-
able advertisement. As an exercise
in testing the accuracy of facts, or
supposed facts, encourage the stu-
dents to test the validity of tobacco
or drinking advertisements that seem
so desirable and tempting.

We need not fear that our young
people will be led astray by per-
verse or false philosophies if they
have been taught to think well and
have a clear understanding of gospel
principles. Teachers as well as
members of the Church are com-
manded to, ". . . seek ye diligently
and teach one another words of
wisdom; yea, seek ye out of the best
books words of wisdom; seek learn-
ing, even by study and also by faith."
(D&C 88:118.) But in our 'seeking
we must remember to seek also the
Spirit of the Lord, for as Lehi
warns, ". . . to be learned is good if
they hearken unto the counsels of
God." (2 Nephi 9:29.) And if we
will do this, the Lord has promised
that we shall receive special power
from above in this great calling.

". . . Ye are not sent forth to be
taught, but to teach the children
of men the things which I have put
into your hands by the power of my
Spirit;

"And ye are to be taught from on
high. Sanctify yourselves and ye
shall be endowed with power, that
ye may give even as I have spoken."
(D&C 43:15-16.)

Simple as it seems, it was a great
discovery that the key of knowledge
could turn both ways, that it could
open, as well as lock, the door of
power to the many.

—J. R. Lowell, Among My Books

974

THE IMPROVEMENT ERA

COUGARS

Dean Bennett, Mountain America's top
sportscaster, brings you all the excitement and
color of the very best in collegiate basketball.
Don't miss his description of all "Y" basket-
ball games on KSL/ 1160 Radio.

OACHES CORNER

Comments by BYU coach Stan Watts in per-
son following each game. Hear and enjoy the
Tip-off and Coaches Corner presented by
Deseret Federal Saxnngs and Loan.

1960-61 BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY BASKETBALL SCHEDULE

Dec 2-3

Dec.

29-30

Jan.

DECEMBER

1960

BYU at Univ. of Washington
BYU at Univ. of Oklahoma
BYU vs Univ. of Miami (Florida
BYU vs Texas Christian Univ,
BYU vs Memphis State
BYU vs New Mexico State
BYU vs. Univ. of Kansas
BYU vs Kent State
BYU at Univ. of Louisville
BYU in Poinsettia, Tournament
Greenville, S.C. LSU, Citadel,

BYU vs Montana State Univ.
BYU at Colorado State U.

9:00

Jan. 14

8:00

Jan. 20

) 8:00

Jan. 27